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LITHIUM STOCK |
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2010 |
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From The Exploration And Production Of Lithium To Partnering For Manufacturing, Lomiko Metals Inc. Is Developing Into A Fully Integrated Battery Company |
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Lomiko Metals Inc. is a Canadian-based junior
company whose objective is to increase shareholder value through the
acquisition and exploration of high quality mineral mining projects and
development into a fully integrated battery supplier. Lomiko is currently
exploring for salt brines that contain lithium, sodium, sulfate, chloride
and potash in salt lakes or salars. Lomiko's growth strategy is to become a
fully integrated supplier of lithium ion batteries. The potential for
partnership in creating rechargeable lithium batteries to replace current
polluting methods of energy is excellent in the newly developing electric
car industry. Interest in lithium and lithium batteries is growing
exponentially. The Company is committed to its development program and in
showing corporate social and environmental stewardship in the arena. Interview conducted by: Lynn Fosse, Senior Editor, CEOCFOinterviews.com, Published - May 14, 2010
Mr. Gill: Lomiko is focused on becoming a fully integrated battery company that focuses on lithium ion batteries. We started out as a company that was looking for lithium in Chile and Nevada and now we have added a new focus, which includes the purchase and resale of refined lithium products such as lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide, and would like to find a partner within the battery manufacturing industry.
CEOCFO: Is
that a strategy that is being commonly employed, or is it something fairly
unique to Lomiko? CEOCFO: What is happening today at the company, where are you in getting established? Mr. Gill: We have made some good progress. We started in June of 2009 with a property in Chile and what we have been able to do there is start the process of exploring in Chile. We have made applications with the Chilean government. Despite some delays do to some earthquakes down there we plan to explore the Aguas de Caliente Lithium Brine Property, which is 2100 hectares in the middle of Chile near the Salar de Atacama, which is the location of the SQM production facility. That project is underway. In addition, we signed an agreement where we purchased 552 load claims in Nevada and that is property is called the Alkali Lake Project. So those 11,000 acres in an area which is also near a production facility called Silver Peak owned by Chemetall Foote, a subsidiary of Rockwood. We are in the vicinity of producers, our properties have some geological similarities to SQM and Chemetall Foote properties and we are basically working away at getting the exploration done on the properties. On the other side, we have from a producer, the ability to purchase lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide directly from the producer and make partnerships. So we have the ability to purchase as of now and we are looking for partners that are willing to invest into Lomiko that have battery manufacturing capabilities.
CEOCFO: There is a lot of lithium interest today; what is the availability and any challenges in the development? Mr. Gill: There are significant challenges in developing lithium-producing properties. It takes quite a bit of time and also the production process requires that brine be removed from the salt lake, and dried in settling ponds so the water would evaporate. The materials that are left are processed to remove various useful chemicals; potash, lithium, iodide, all come from the dried-up salt. Soda ash (Sodium bicarbonate) and other catalysts such as calcium are used. You want to be able to come up with one product such as the lithium carbonate, which is 99% pure, and then the hydroxide, which contains the lithium in liquid form and both of those products are used in the battery manufacturing process.
CEOCFO: What is the expertise of your management team? Mr. Gill: Lomiko has been able to recognize that there is an opportunity in lithium. We think lithium is going to be a 30-year growth market and we are at the beginning of a market essentially similar to the oil boom in the 1900s. We think that lithium is going to be the power source for the next boom in in energy. We think this is going to be big and that is why we are in the market and why we have identified Lithium as an exceptional element and a required element in almost every type of rechargeable battery that is broadly used now and will be created in the future. Now we recognize that all the major electric car companies have used lithium ion, lithium vanadium, or lithium polymer batteries as their main power source, and that is in the production cycle now. We also have identified the demand for the product on the manufacturing side. We have spoken to groups in China, Japan, and Korea, and we keep in contact with many of the people in Asia that are in the market. We understand that they require constant and secure supplies of lithium and that is their main concern. That is why you have a lot of companies searching for lithium exploration in the long-term. Sure they can buy lithium in the short-term, which is considered a two to five-year cycle, but in the long-term the twenty or thirty-year cycle, ot is more difficult to tie down supply because the current manufacturing plants will last for only twenty or thirty years. You are going to want to be able to have the cost and supply of lithium that is first acceptable and not too expensive so that you can moderate the cost and development of batteries that you are going to using in electric cars. So what we understand is that there is a supply side on the lithium and we have made connections on the supply side and we know that there is a demand side, where we have made connections as well.
CEOCFO: What is the financial picture like for Lomiko today? Mr. Gill: We have raised $1 million initially in August of 2009. We currently have about $600 thousand of that available. We haven’t spent a lot on acquisitions. We own the lode claims at Alkalai Lake 100%. We may pick up other properties. In Chile, we own the property we have outright at this point in time. That is exceptional, so there is no other option payments that are required on the properties that we own currently. So we have plenty of visibility going forward and we have the ability to raise money.
CEOCFO: In closing, why should potential investors pick Lomiko? Mr. Gill: We have 100% owned properties. We are talking to the end manufacturers of batteries as well as current lithium producers to be able to have a short-term plan in place. We have a long-term plan in place for exploration. We are an exceptional value when compared to other companies in this space who are trading at four or five times the price.
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We have 100% owned properties. We are talking to the end manufacturers of batteries as well as current lithium producers to be able to have a short-term plan in place. We have a long-term plan in place for exploration. We are an exceptional value when compared to other companies in this space who are trading at four or five times the price. - A. Paul Gill |
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