Ioneer Ltd received its federal permit for the Rhyolite Ridge Lithium-Boron Project from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). With the positive decision, Rhyolite Ridge becomes the first US lithium project approved by the Biden Administration as part of its efforts to accelerate domestic critical mineral production and advances the Esmeralda County, Nevada investment toward construction in 2025 and first production in 2028.

Rhyolite Ridge will supply the batteries for more than 370,000 American-made electric vehicles annually and process crucial battery materials on-site in the United States. The project will create an estimated 500 jobs during construction and 350 high paying jobs during its decades in operation.

The formal Record of Decision (ROD) follows the issuance last month of the final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) by the BLM, which incorporated public feedback received during the April-June open comment period, and concludes the formal federal permitting process, which began in early 2020. Ioneer’s pre-permitting work began in early 2019 and, in December 2022, the company formally entered the final stages of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review, as required by all projects on federal lands.

Ioneer enacted major changes to the project throughout the permitting process resulting in a stronger, more sustainable project that incorporates the needs and concerns of all stakeholders. These include:

• Major modification to the location of the western wall of the quarry to avoid Tiehm’s buckwheat, an endangered species adjacent to the project designated in December 2022,

• Relocation of all possible infrastructure and related disturbance to areas outside of critical habitat identified because of its potential to support pollinators for Tiehm’s buckwheat,

• Relocation of overburden storage facilities to avoid culturally sensitive sites and other important mitigation measures based on input from tribal site visits and consultation,

• Commitments to water conservation, and

• Commitments to dust, noise and light monitoring as well as mitigation and minimization of impact for the community and nature.

As part of the final EIS, the US Fish and Wildlife Service, which oversees the administration of the Endangered Species Act (ESA), also formally released the ESA Section 7 Biological Opinion concluding Rhyolite Ridge will not jeopardize Tiehm’s buckwheat or adversely modify its critical habitat.

Rhyolite Ridge’s commitment to sustainability extends to its processing facility, for which 70% of engineering is complete, to recycle half of all the water used. As Ioneer’s facility comes online, the company will evaluate and continue to deploy new technologies to further reduce water consumption.

Due to the deposit’s unique minerology, Ioneer will limit its operational footprint by avoiding the use of evaporation ponds and curtail its carbon footprint as its steam-powered facility will operate independently from the Nevada energy grid.

With the project formally approved by the federal government, Ioneer expects to issue updated reserve figures and estimated project costs by December 2024 and advance toward a Final Investment Decision with its financing partners.

Rhyolite Ridge is the only known lithium-boron deposit in North America and one of only two known such deposits in the world. In September 2021, Ioneer entered into an agreement with Sibanye-Stillwater in which, following the satisfaction of conditions precedent, Sibanye-Stillwater will acquire a 50% interest in the project, with Ioneer maintaining a 50% interest and retaining the operational management responsibility for the joint venture. In January 2023, Ioneer received a conditional commitment from the US Department of Energy Loan Programs Office for up to $700 million of debt financing.

Ioneer signed separate offtake agreements with Ford Motor Company and PPES (joint venture between Toyota and Panasonic) in 2022 and Korea’s EcoPro Innovation in 2021.