2021
Piedmont Increases Lithium Resources By 40%
- Piedmont Lithium Project’s Global Mineral Resources increased to 39.2 Mt @ 1.09% Li2O
- Exploration and infill drilling continues with five rigs operating on the Core property
- The updated resource base will underpin the Scoping Study update targeted for May 2021
- A further resource update will precede the DFS scheduled for September 2021 release
NEW YORK – Piedmont Lithium Limited (“Piedmont” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq:PLL; ASX:PLL) is pleased to announce an updated Global Mineral Resource estimate (“MRE”) (Table 1) for the Company’s flagship Piedmont Lithium Project in North Carolina, USA which includes updated Mineral Resource estimates from the Core and Central properties and an initial Mineral Resource estimate from the Huffstetler property (Table 2). The total MRE for the project is 39.2 Mt at 1.09% Li2O (Figure 1), with 55% of the MRE currently classified in the Indicated category. The Mineral Resource estimate is reported in accordance with JORC Code (2012 Edition).
|
Table 1: Piedmont Lithium Global Mineral Resources Estimate (MRE) |
||||
|
Resource Category |
Tonnes
|
Grade
|
Li2O
|
LCE
|
|
Indicated |
21.6 |
1.12 |
241,000 |
597,000 |
|
Inferred |
17.6 |
1.03 |
181,000 |
449,000 |
|
Total |
39.2 |
1.09 |
422,000 |
1,046,000 |
Keith D. Phillips, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented: “Increasing the scale of our North Carolina mineral resource to 39.2 Mt at 1.09% Li2O establishes our asset as one of the largest spodumene resources in North America – and the only one in the United States. The expanded resource offers the potential for increased annual lithium production, something we will evaluate as we prepare our updated Scoping Study for release next month. All this is coming together at an ideal time, as the public and private sectors dramatically increase their investment in the electrification of America. Given the scope and strategic location of our Piedmont Lithium Project, we believe we are ideally positioned to play a critical role in helping the United States build a clean energy economy and a U.S. based EV supply chain.”
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Keith D. Phillips
President & CEO
T: +1 973 809 0505
E: kphillips@piedmontlithium.com
Brian Risinger
Vice President – Corporate Communications
T: +1 704 910 9688
Piedmont Names Lithium Industry Veteran as Chief Operating Officer
- Mr. David Klanecky to join Piedmont Lithium as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer
- Mr. Klanecky most recently served as Albemarle Corporation’s Vice President – Lithium Operations – APAC/EU, with responsibility for hard rock lithium mining and chemical processing activities
NEW YORK – Piedmont Lithium Limited (“Piedmont” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq:PLL; ASX:PLL) is pleased to announce that it has appointed Mr. David Klanecky as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. Mr. Klanecky brings deep lithium industry engineering, construction, and operations experience to the Piedmont team. As COO, David will lead the implementation of the Company’s integrated US-based lithium chemicals business, and development of the Company’s operational capabilities.
Mr. Klanecky has spent most of his career in senior operational, research & development, commercial, and strategic leadership roles. From 2013 to 2021, he served in increasingly senior management roles within Albemarle Corporation, the world’s leading lithium producer, including as VP Strategy and Corporate Development and most recently serving as Vice President – Lithium Operations – APAC/EU, with global responsibility for Albemarle’s manufacturing/operations, process technology and product management within the global lithium business. David also served as interim CEO of the MARBL joint venture between Albemarle and Mineral Resources Ltd, which includes the Kemerton and Wodgina assets in Australia.
Before joining Albemarle, David had an impressive twenty-year career with The Dow Chemical Company that spanned the globe including expat assignments in Spain, Switzerland, and China across a number of innovative industries. In his last role with Dow, David launched the Dow Energy Materials Business, focused on Lithium-Ion Battery Materials offerings to cell manufacturers and Auto OEMs, where he served as the Global Business Director for this business unit prior to joining Albemarle in 2013.
David has a Chemical Engineering degree from the University of Nebraska and an Executive MBA from Arizona State/Thunderbird School of Global Management. He will join Piedmont in April 2021 and will be based in the Company’s Belmont, North Carolina headquarters.
Keith D. Phillips, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented: “We are very pleased to welcome David to our senior management team. David’s experience in and enthusiasm for this industry are unmatched. Having had responsibility for the world’s leading hard rock-based lithium hydroxide business, including spodumene investments in Western Australia, lithium hydroxide plants in China, and the lithium hydroxide project currently under construction in Kemerton, Western Australia, David is uniquely qualified to lead Piedmont’s operating team as we move into the execution stage of building America’s #1 integrated lithium hydroxide business.”
This announcement has been authorized for release by the Company’s President & CEO, Keith D. Phillips.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210331005098/en/
Keith D. Phillips
President & CEO
T: +1 973 809 0505
E: kphillips@piedmontlithium.com
Brian Risinger
Vice President – Corporate Communications
T: +1 704 910 9688
Piedmont Announces Closing of Public Offering
NEW YORK – Piedmont Lithium Limited (“Piedmont” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq:PLL; ASX:PLL) todayannounced the closing of its previously announced underwritten public offering of 1.75 million American Depositary Shares (“ADSs”), with each ADS representing 100 of its ordinary shares (“Public Offering”). The aggregate gross proceeds of the Public Offering, before underwriting discounts and commissions, totaled $122.5 million.
J.P. Morgan, Evercore ISI and Canaccord Genuity acted as joint book-runners for the Public Offering. BTIG, LLC, B. Riley Securities, Loop Capital Markets, Roth Capital Partners, ThinkEquity, a division of Fordham Financial Management, Inc., Jett Capital Advisors and Tuohy Brothers acted as co-managers for the Public Offering.
Proceeds from the Public Offering will be used to continue development of the Company’s Piedmont Lithium Project, including definitive feasibility studies, testwork, permitting, further exploration drilling, mineral resource estimate updates and ongoing land consolidation, to fund the previously announced strategic investments in Sayona Mining Limited and Sayona Quebec Inc and other possible strategic initiatives, and for general corporate purposes.
The Public Offering was made pursuant to an effective shelf registration statement that has been filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). A final prospectus supplement related to the Public Offering has been filed with the SEC and is available on the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov and on the ASX website. Copies of the final prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus relating to the Public Offering may be obtained from J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, c/o Broadridge Financial Solutions, 1155 Long Island Avenue, Edgewood, NY 11717, by telephone at (866) 803-9204 or by e-mail at prospectus-eq_fi@jpmchase.com; Evercore Group L.L.C., Attention: Equity Capital Markets, 55 East 52nd Street, 35th Floor, New York, NY 10055, by telephone at (888) 474-0200 or by e-mail at ecm.prospectus@evercore.com; and Canaccord Genuity LLC, 99 High Street, Suite 1200, Boston, Massachusetts 02110, Attention: Syndicate Department, by telephone at (671) 371-3900 or email at prospectus@cgf.com.
This press release is not an offer or sale of the securities in the United States or in any other jurisdiction where such offer or sale is prohibited, and such securities may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an exemption from registration under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains “forward-looking statements” as defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that involve risks and uncertainties. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terms such as “may,” “might,” “will,” “objective,” “intend,” “should,” “could,” “can,” “would,” “expect,” “believe,” “design,” “estimate,” “predict,” “potential,” “plan” or the negative of these terms and similar expressions intended to identify forward-looking statements. Piedmont cautions readers that forward-looking statements are based on management’s expectations and assumptions as of the date of this news release and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially, including, but not limited to, the anticipated use of the net proceeds of the Public Offering; the fact that the Company’s management will have broad discretion in the use of the proceeds from the sale of the ADSs; the Company’s operations being further disrupted by, or the Company’s financial results being adversely affected by public health threats, including the novel coronavirus pandemic; the Company’s limited operating history in the lithium industry; the Company’s status as an exploration stage company; the Company’s ability to identify lithium mineralization and achieve commercial lithium mining; mining, exploration and mine construction, if warranted, on the Company’s properties; the Company’s ability to achieve and maintain profitability and to develop positive cash flow from the Company’s mining activities; the Company’s ability to enter into and deliver product under supply agreements; investment risk and operational costs associated with the Company’s exploration activities; the Company’s ability to access capital and the financial markets; recruiting, training and maintaining employees; possible defects in title of the Company’s properties; potential conflicts of interest of the Company’s directors and officers; compliance with government regulations; the Company’s ability to acquire necessary mining licenses, permits or access rights; environmental liabilities and reclamation costs; volatility in lithium prices or demand for lithium; the Company’s ADS price and trading volume volatility; risks relating to the development of an active trading market for the ADSs; ADS holders not having certain shareholder rights; ADS holders not receiving certain distributions; and the Company’s status as a foreign private issuer, including the effects of our proposed redomiciliation from Australia to the United States on such status and subsequent status as a domestic issuer, and emerging growth company. Forward-looking statements reflect its analysis only on their stated date, and Piedmont undertakes no obligation to update or revise these statements except as may be required by law.
About Piedmont
Piedmont Lithium (Nasdaq:PLL; ASX:PLL) is developing a world-class integrated lithium business in the United States, enabling the transition to a net-zero world and the creation of a clean energy economy in America. Our location in the renowned Carolina Tin Spodumene Belt of North Carolina, the cradle of the lithium industry, positions us to be one of the world’s lowest cost producers of lithium hydroxide, and the most strategically located to serve the fast-growing US electric vehicle supply chain. The unique geographic proximity of our resources, production operations and prospective customers places us on the path to be among the most sustainable producers of lithium hydroxide in the world and should allow Piedmont to play a pivotal role in supporting America’s move to the electrification of transportation and energy storage. For more information, visit www.piedmontlithium.com.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210325005766/en/
Keith Phillips
President & CEO
T: +1 973 809 0505
E: kphillips@piedmontlithium.com
Brian Risinger
VP – Investor Relations and Corporate Communications
T: +1 704 910 9688
Piedmont Announces Pricing of Public Offering of American Depositary Shares
NEW YORK – Piedmont Lithium Limited (“Piedmont” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq:PLL; ASX:PLL) today announced the pricing of an underwritten public offering of 1.75 million of its American Depositary Shares (“ADSs”), with each ADS representing 100 of its ordinary shares (“Public Offering”), at a price per ADS to the public of $70.00, for aggregate gross proceeds of $122.5 million. Piedmont has granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 262,500 ADSs at the issue price of the Public Offering. The Public Offering is expected to close on March 25, 2021, subject to customary closing conditions.
J.P. Morgan, Evercore ISI and Canaccord Genuity are acting as joint book-runners for the Public Offering. BTIG, LLC, B. Riley Securities, Loop Capital Markets, Roth Capital Partners, ThinkEquity, a division of Fordham Financial Management, Inc., Jett Capital Advisors and Tuohy Brothers are acting as co-managers for the Public Offering.
Proceeds from the Public Offering will be used to continue development of the Company’s Piedmont Lithium Project, including definitive feasibility studies, testwork, permitting, further exploration drilling, mineral resource estimate updates and ongoing land consolidation, to fund the previously announced strategic investments in Sayona Mining Limited and Sayona Quebec Inc and other possible strategic initiatives, and for general corporate purposes.
The Public Offering is being made pursuant to an effective shelf registration statement that has been filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). A final prospectus supplement related to the Public Offering will be filed with the SEC and made available on the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov and on the ASX website. Copies of the final prospectus supplement, when available, and the accompanying prospectus relating to the Public Offering may be obtained from J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, c/o Broadridge Financial Solutions, 1155 Long Island Avenue, Edgewood, NY 11717, by telephone at (866) 803-9204 or by e-mail at prospectus-eq_fi@jpmchase.com; Evercore Group L.L.C., Attention: Equity Capital Markets, 55 East 52nd Street, 35th Floor, New York, NY 10055, by telephone at (888) 474-0200 or by e-mail at ecm.prospectus@evercore.com; and Canaccord Genuity LLC, 99 High Street, Suite 1200, Boston, Massachusetts 02110, Attention: Syndicate Department, by telephone at (671) 371-3900 or email at prospectus@cgf.com.
This press release is not an offer or sale of the securities in the United States or in any other jurisdiction where such offer or sale is prohibited, and such securities may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an exemption from registration under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains “forward-looking statements” as defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that involve risks and uncertainties. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terms such as “may,” “might,” “will,” “objective,” “intend,” “should,” “could,” “can,” “would,” “expect,” “believe,” “design,” “estimate,” “predict,” “potential,” “plan” or the negative of these terms and similar expressions intended to identify forward-looking statements. Piedmont cautions readers that forward-looking statements are based on management’s expectations and assumptions as of the date of this news release and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially, including, but not limited to, risks related to whether the Company will close the Public Offering on the expected terms, or at all; the anticipated use of the net proceeds of the Public Offering; the fact that the Company’s management will have broad discretion in the use of the proceeds from any sale of the ADSs; the Company’s operations being further disrupted by, or the Company’s financial results being adversely affected by public health threats, including the novel coronavirus pandemic; the Company’s limited operating history in the lithium industry; the Company’s status as an exploration stage company; the Company’s ability to identify lithium mineralization and achieve commercial lithium mining; mining, exploration and mine construction, if warranted, on the Company’s properties; the Company’s ability to achieve and maintain profitability and to develop positive cash flow from the Company’s mining activities; the Company’s ability to enter into and deliver product under supply agreements; investment risk and operational costs associated with the Company’s exploration activities; the Company’s ability to access capital and the financial markets; recruiting, training and maintaining employees; possible defects in title of the Company’s properties; potential conflicts of interest of the Company’s directors and officers; compliance with government regulations; the Company’s ability to acquire necessary mining licenses, permits or access rights; environmental liabilities and reclamation costs; volatility in lithium prices or demand for lithium; the Company’s ADS price and trading volume volatility; risks relating to the development of an active trading market for the ADSs; ADS holders not having certain shareholder rights; ADS holders not receiving certain distributions; and the Company’s status as a foreign private issuer, including the effects of our proposed redomiciliation from Australia to the United States on such status and subsequent status as a domestic issuer, and emerging growth company. Forward-looking statements reflect its analysis only on their stated date, and Piedmont undertakes no obligation to update or revise these statements except as may be required by law.
About Piedmont
Piedmont Lithium (Nasdaq:PLL; ASX:PLL) is developing a world-class integrated lithium business in the United States, enabling the transition to a net-zero world and the creation of a clean energy economy in America. Our location in the renowned Carolina Tin Spodumene Belt of North Carolina, the cradle of the lithium industry, positions us to be one of the world’s lowest cost producers of lithium hydroxide, and the most strategically located to serve the fast-growing US electric vehicle supply chain. The unique geographic proximity of our resources, production operations and prospective customers places us on the path to be among the most sustainable producers of lithium hydroxide in the world and should allow Piedmont to play a pivotal role in supporting America’s move to the electrification of transportation and energy storage. For more information, visit www.piedmontlithium.com.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210323006049/en/
Keith Phillips
President & CEO
T: +1 973 809 0505
E: kphillips@piedmontlithium.com
Brian Risinger
VP – Investor Relations and Corporate Communications
T: +1 704 910 9688