The Thacker Pass Deposit is located within an extinct supervolcano (30 km by 40 km) named McDermitt Caldera, which was formed 16.3 million years ago and is associated with the Yellowstone hotspot. For a few hundred thousand years following the volcanic eruption, water percolated through nearby volcanic rocks resulting in the leaching of lithium. The lithium was then deposited in the caldera basin, forming a large caldera lake and a thick sequence of associated lacustrine deposits.

Renewed volcanism uplifted the center of the caldera, draining the lake and bringing the lithium-rich sediments to the surface of the earth in the vicinity of the present-day Montana Mountains.

Recent drilling confirms that the lithium mineralization is extensive, which suggests that the formation of lithium-rich clays is not associated with hydrothermal activity. The lithium mineralization is due to burial diagenesis and/or primary erosional processes. In the immediate project area, lithium-rich clays are typically overlain by alluvium with an average thickness of approximately 5 m and underlain by rhyolitic volcanics. Interbedded basaltic beds also occur deepening from the northwest to the southeast. The clay itself is interbedded with ash. Mineralogically, the upper clay horizons are dominated by smectite-type clay, while the deeper horizons are dominated by illite-type clay, with the latter showing mineralization of up to 9,000 ppm, and the former up to 4,000 ppm. This differentiation supports the diagenesis hypothesis.

Vertical drilling indicates that the clay intersections range from a few meters up to 90 m.

Lithium Americas Corp. is engaged in a exploration program to expand the resource in the vicinity of the proposed pit area. In 2017, Lithium Americas Corp. identified a new target area south of the proposed pit area called the Southwest Basin. Exploration assay results, published in the May 2017 Technical Report, demonstrate that Li mineralization in the Southwest Basin occurs at grades and depths similar to the proposed pit area. Recent seismic surveys and ongoing exploration drilling aims to increase the confidence of the Southwest Basin resource and define the total extent of Li mineralization throughout the McDermitt Caldera.

The mining operation for the Project is planned as a simple and low-cost open-pit mine using a small fleet of surface miners. Given the soft nature of the claystone, minimal blasting is anticipated and will be limited to areas in the deposit with basalt formations. The mine plan includes excavating highest-grade and lowest strip ore in the early years of production.

The production process is designed to use conventional and commonly-available equipment, arranged to take advantage of the distinctive qualities of the high-grade ore.  The process comprises a series of steps to concentrate, separate and produce battery-grade Li₂CO₃.

First, ore from the mine will be crushed, screened and then transferred as a slurry to the leaching circuit where sulfuric acid will be added to attack the ore and liberate the lithium from the clay. The high-grade quality of the ore allows for leaching to occur in stirred reactors (vats), specifically designed to maximize speed and efficiency of lithium dissolution, while minimizing sulfuric acid consumption. Total leaching time is estimated at three hours.

The resulting lithium-bearing solution will then go through a pH-neutralization step. Neutralization will be achieved with ground limestone during start-up and sustained with recycled alkaline solids from an upstream precipitation process during normal operation. Next, the lithium solution will undergo a crystallization step using steam and electricity from the sulfuric acid production process. Water is removed for recycling, and magnesium sulfate (Epsom salt) is produced. Any magnesium remaining in solution is removed in a second step that involves the addition of reagents to precipitate magnesium hydroxide.

Finally, soda ash will be added to the lithium bearing solution to produce a high-quality, battery-grade Li₂CO₃. Much of the water contained in the lithium solution will be recovered and returned to the process.  The total time projected to manufacture battery-grade Li₂CO₃ from the ore is less than 24 hours. The overall recovery of lithium from the ore is 83%.

Environmental leadership is a core value of Lithium Americas.  Thacker Pass has been engineered to minimize the environmental footprint, by avoiding sensitive environmental habitat and employing the best available environmental control technologies.

Lithium Americas has developed a community engagement plan, recognizing that the well-being of all stakeholders is essential to the success of the Project.  The Project was designed reflecting information collected during numerous stakeholder meetings, including a public open house. This approach is expected to mitigate potential concerns at the design level, and ensures the local community is included early in the development process.  Future public open houses are planned as the project advances to ensure the community is fully engaged.

Lithium Americas is proud to be a founding supporter of the Sagebrush Restoration Fund. Through the efforts of Dr. Tamzen Stringham and her colleagues, the degradation of Nevada's rangelands caused by fire and invasive weeds can be stopped and reversed. More information about the Sagebrush Restoration Fund can be found here 
https://naes.unr.edu/rangeland_ecology/great-basin-sagebrush-restoration-fund/

On July 29, 2020, the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Thacker Pass lithium project was published by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (“BLM”) in the federal register to commence a 45-day public comment period. 

The BLM will then consider comments submitted by the public and regulatory agencies, update the Draft EIS as appropriate, and issue a Final Environmental Impact Statement.  A 30-day availability period is expected to follow before the BLM issues its Record of Decision (“ROD”) on the proposed Project and exploration plan. The ROD will state the BLM’s decision, describe alternatives that were considered, identify the preferred alternative and rationale for selection, and set forth any stipulations and environmental protection measures required by the agency. 

A positive final decision, along with BLM’s Plan of Operations Permit approval, if granted, would represent BLM’s authorization for construction and operations to proceed upon posting financial assurance for reclamation.  Consistent with the NEPA time schedule, Lithium Nevada is also applying for various Federal, State and local permits to secure other necessary approvals for construction, operations, and reclamation.