Sigma Lithium Resources Corporation Initiates Significant Earthworks Activities at its Wholly-Owned Grota Do Cirilo Hard Rock Lithium Project
June 23, 2021 at 08:38 pm IST
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Sigma Lithium Resources Corporation (‘Sigma’ or the ‘Company’) announced that it has initiated significant earthworks activities at the Company’s wholly-owned Grota do Cirilo hard rock lithium project (the ‘Project’). The Company ‘broke ground’ with topsoil removal, clearing and grubbing in the site area (plant and mine). These activities follow completion of the geotechnical assessment for the civil engineering and evaluation of impact on the foundation design and earthwork quantities for construction of the foundation for the production plant for Phase 1 of the Project, which is designed to allow for expansion design features incorporating a future second production line. The occasion was marked by a visit of the Governor of the State of Minas Gerais and his senior leadership team including, amongst others, the Secretary of State for Economic Development, his Deputy Secretary and The President of INDI (Secretary of Strategic Development Projects for Minas Gerais State). Discussions were centered around the broader development of the region of Vale do Jequitinhonha and the pivotal role of the lithium value chain. Estimates of Minas Gerais State envision that Sigma’s investments will generate approximately 400 direct jobs in Phase 1 of the Project, attracting more companies to the region and leading up to a further approximately 6,000 indirect jobs. As a result of initiating certain construction related activities, Sigma upgraded its current environmental license LP/LI to implementation stage (‘Licença de Implementação’). In this regard, the Company has taken the following steps as part of its commitment to outstanding ESG practices: Sigma has delivered an agreement (‘Termo de Compromisso’) to the towns of Araçuai and Itinga for the creation of an independent investment agency (‘Investment Agency’) as part of its commitment to social and economic development, in a signature ceremony presided over by the Governor of the Minas Gerais State during his visit to the Project site. The Investment Agency will promote private investment and economic diversification of the region and is structured along the same lines as the methodology used by the World Bank. The Investment Agency will be the forum for the discussion of regional development, putting the towns of Araçuai and Itinga on the national agenda and international investment map. Sigma will donate (through one of its related parties) approximately 150 hectares of forest land to create a state park, as part of its carbon ‘in-setting’ initiatives to decrease emissions and footprint in the region. This area is located at a high sierra approximately 140 km from the Project and was considered to be potentially at risk to be suppressed for cattle pastures. This transfer to the State of Minas Gerais National Park Institute (‘IEF – Instituto Estadual de Florestas’) is the environmental compensation for the suppression of semi-arid and savannah bush-type vegetation at or around the mine pit areas of the Project as per Sigma´s current environmental license.
Sigma Lithium Corporation is a Canada-based global lithium producer engaged in powering electric vehicle batteries with environmentally sustainable and high-purity lithium. The Company is producing Triple Zero Green Lithium from its Grota do Cirilo Project in Brazil. The Company holds a 100% interest in four mineral properties: Grota do Cirilo, Sao Jose, Santa Clara, and Genipapo, located in the municipalities of Aracuai and Itinga, in the Vale do Jequitinhonha region in the State of Minas Gerais, Brazil (Lithium Properties). It has exploration potential including over 200 identified pegmatites on its 20,000-hectare land package, representing about 29 mineral rights. The Company has mineral properties in the exploration and evaluation stage. Its Project is located in the northeastern part of the state of Minas Gerais, in the municipalities of Aracuai and Itinga, approximately 25 kilometers (km) east of the town of Aracuai and 600 km northeast of Belo Horizonte, the state capital.