Avalon Enters into Agreement for Petalite Concentrates from Glass-Ceramics Manufacturer
Avalon has secured a firm commitment to purchase petalite concentrates produced at the Company's Separation Rapids Lithium Project north of Kenora, Ontario. The off-take agreement is for a multiple number of years with a major non-Chinese international glass ceramic manufacturer. The agreement is subject to a number of conditions precedent, including the delivery and acceptance of a larger commercial sample of the petalite product. The customer has agreed to initially pay the current market price for the petalite product for at least the first year after commercial shipment commences. There is now considerable interest from other major glass ceramic manufacturers in Europe and Asia as there is presently a global shortage of petalite supply after China took control of the traditional petalite supply sources in Zimbabwe.
Avalon's Separation Rapids Project hosts one of the few significant resources of the rare high purity lithium aluminum silicate mineral, petalite (LiAlSi4O10) in the world. Next steps involve processing the 5,000 tonne bulk sample collected from the project site in 2021 to produce trial quantities of the petalite product for the many end-users that have expressed interest. While the Company has been planning to establish a DMS processing facility on the property to begin producing trial quantities of the petalite product, Avalon now has access to an alternative process facility that will allow the Company to accelerate the process work to create the larger product samples this year that have been requested by the off-taker and the other glass-ceramic manufacturers that have expressed interest.
Commented Avalon's President & CEO, Don Bubar, "While Avalon remains committed to serving the emerging lithium battery materials market in Ontario through its recently announced partnership with LG Energy Solution, Ltd., Avalon is also well positioned to serve both the glass-ceramic and battery materials markets due to the large size of the Big Whopper pegmatite resource and the presence of several other petalite pegmatites on the property. It has been over 20 years since we first tried to serve the glass-ceramics market but it looks like our time has finally come! Lithium has other potential markets as well as a number of other historical applications including in pharmaceutical products to treat manic depression. For further information on Lithium please see an article I posted on the Innovation News Network: https://www.innovationnewsnetwork.com/lithium-developments-the-past-present-and-future/19251/"
About Avalon Advanced Materials Inc.
Avalon Advanced Materials Inc. is a Canadian mineral development company specializing in sustainably-produced materials for clean technology. The Company now has four advanced stage projects, providing investors with exposure to lithium, tin and indium, as well as rare earth elements, tantalum, cesium and zirconium. Avalon is currently focusing on developing its Separation Rapids Lithium Project near Kenora, Ontario while continuing to advance other projects, including its 100%-owned Lilypad Cesium-Tantalum-Lithium Project located near Fort Hope, Ontario. Social responsibility and environmental stewardship are corporate cornerstones.
Tags: Northern Ontario / Operational Updates / Metals / All Articles