West African lithium developer, Leo Lithium Limited (ASX: LLL) has executed an agreement for port services, including product unloading, storage and shiploading, of Goulamina Lithium Project concentrate product (Product) at the Abidjan Port, a major West African deep water port.
The agreement between Lithium du Mali SA (LMSA), a wholly owned subsidiary of Leo Lithium, and Terminal Vraquier Abidjan (SEA-Invest), secures storage for the Goulamina product at Abidjan Port for a period of 10 years.
Under the Agreement, Leo Lithium has secured warehouses with a footprint of 9,000m2 for product storage directly on the wharf of the Port of Abidjan. Leo Lithium’s initial assessments indicate this equates to approximately 60,000t of Product storage.
The agreement stipulates a minimum product throughput of 250,000tpa, however there is no upper limit on quantities which can be exported. The agreement includes handling unit rates and loading rates which are in line with cost forecasting in the DFS Update.
There is no capex required from Leo Lithium as SEA-Invest will be responsible for making investments to upgrade the warehouses and make it suitable for Product storage.
The facilities are well established and minor upgrades will be completed to enable product receival and export from 1 July 2023, allowing for a potential acceleration of the Goulamina project timeline.
LMSA and SEA-Invest will finalise and execute a full Operations Agreement over the period through to H1 2023 although this agreement locks in the key terms. An option for extension will be included in the Operations Agreement, in line with SEA-Invest’s port concession with the Abidjan Port Authority.
Port of Abidjan
The Port of Abidjan is a major West African deep water port with significant bulk mineral handling capability. Berth 14 has capacity for handymax sized ships up to 55Kt, well capable of meeting the preliminary planned shipment size of 30,000t.
Abidjan is located approximately 1,000km from Goulamina and Leo Lithium intends to truck Product to the Port of Abidjan, using logistics contractors, resulting in minimal capex for the company.
Additional Goulamina Product Transport Plans
Leo Lithium intends to maintain two export channels for risk mitigation reasons. With port access in Abidjan now secured, the company will examine alternative ports at Dakar, Senegal and San-Pédro, Côte d’Ivoire. The Company will continue engaging with road transport contractors on a mine gate-to-port service with further announcements expected in H1 2023.
“The first plank of our logistics strategy is now in place. We have secured ideal storage facilities for Goulamina spodumene concentrate product on the berth at the Port of Abidjan, a major West African deep-water harbour suitable for the large bulk carriers that will transport our product to end users. This is a fantastic outcome as it will minimise material movements and optimise logistics costs,” Managing Director, Simon Hay, said.
“We are very pleased to commence our relationship with SEA-Invest, who provide full port services and be an essential link in our supply chain. SEA-Invest have an excellent reputation as an international port operator and have been active in Africa for over 16 years.”
For further information please visit: https://leolithium.com/
