Deposit
Kings Valley
Kings Valley is a deposit with published resource estimates in Nevada, recorded in the USGS lithium deposits in the United States selected-sites dataset (2020 release).
Location: Nevada, United States
Commodities: lithium; potassium; sodium; fluorine
Deposit model: 251.30(T) - lithium in smectites of closed basins · unclassified
Geology
“Intracaldera Sedimentary Deposits—A heterogeneous sequence of mostly poorly exposed, poorly lithified, predominantly tuffaceous sedimentary deposits accumulated in a lacustrine basin in the caldera following collapse. They are preserved, and possibly were deposited, in an irregular doughnut-shaped rim or moat around the margin of the caldera. Stratigraphic relations with dated rocks indicate the sediments were deposited over a relatively long time. Through most of the caldera, the sediments overlie intracaldera McDermitt Tuff. Well-bedded, planar to cross-laminated tuffaceous sandstone, siltstone, mudstone, tephra, and minor conglomerate and fossiliferous limestone overlie the coarse deposits. These finer deposits are sparsely exposed in a few canyons and in mine and exploration workings in the northern part of the caldera, where they are locally silicified by hydrothermal alteration, but poorly exposed to commonly covered by Quaternary fan deposits elsewhere, especially around Thacker Pass in the south.” (Henry and others (2017))
Published resource estimates
| Material | Class | Amount | Grade | Contained | As of | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| sodium (Na) | Inferred | — | 1.1 percent | — | Jan 1, 2016 | Carew and Rossi (2016), Page 58, Table 13.1 — Carew, T.J., and Rossi, M.E., 2016, Independent technical report for the Lithium Nevada project, Nevada, USA, prepared for Lithium Americas Corp. [Effective date May 31, 2016]: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, SRK Consulting Inc., June 2, 119 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com.] |
| lithium (Li) | Proven plus Probable | — | 3,283 parts per million | — | Jan 1, 2018 | Ehsani and others (2018), Page 102, Table 15-5 — Ehsani, R., Fourie, L., Hutson, A., Peldiak, D., Spiering, R., Young, J., and Armstrong, K., 2018, Technical report on the pre-feasibility study for the Thacker Pass project, Humboldt County, Nevada, USA, prepared for Lithium Americas Corp. [Effective date August 1, 2018]: Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, Advisian, August 1, 238 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com] |
| potassium (K) | Indicated | — | 3.07 percent | — | Jan 1, 2016 | Carew and Rossi (2016), Page 58, Table 13.1 — Carew, T.J., and Rossi, M.E., 2016, Independent technical report for the Lithium Nevada project, Nevada, USA, prepared for Lithium Americas Corp. [Effective date May 31, 2016]: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, SRK Consulting Inc., June 2, 119 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com.] |
| lithium (Li) | Inferred | — | 2,932 parts per million | — | Jan 1, 2018 | Ehsani and others (2018), Page 91, Table 14-4 — Ehsani, R., Fourie, L., Hutson, A., Peldiak, D., Spiering, R., Young, J., and Armstrong, K., 2018, Technical report on the pre-feasibility study for the Thacker Pass project, Humboldt County, Nevada, USA, prepared for Lithium Americas Corp. [Effective date August 1, 2018]: Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, Advisian, August 1, 238 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com] |
| potassium (K) | Measured | — | 3.27 percent | — | Jan 1, 2016 | Carew and Rossi (2016), Page 58, Table 13.1 — Carew, T.J., and Rossi, M.E., 2016, Independent technical report for the Lithium Nevada project, Nevada, USA, prepared for Lithium Americas Corp. [Effective date May 31, 2016]: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, SRK Consulting Inc., June 2, 119 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com.] |
| potassium (K) | Inferred | — | 3.04 percent | — | Jan 1, 2016 | Carew and Rossi (2016), Page 58, Table 13.1 — Carew, T.J., and Rossi, M.E., 2016, Independent technical report for the Lithium Nevada project, Nevada, USA, prepared for Lithium Americas Corp. [Effective date May 31, 2016]: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, SRK Consulting Inc., June 2, 119 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com.] |
| sodium (Na) | Indicated | — | 1.04 percent | — | Jan 1, 2016 | Carew and Rossi (2016), Page 58, Table 13.1 — Carew, T.J., and Rossi, M.E., 2016, Independent technical report for the Lithium Nevada project, Nevada, USA, prepared for Lithium Americas Corp. [Effective date May 31, 2016]: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, SRK Consulting Inc., June 2, 119 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com.] |
| lithium (Li) | Unclassified | — | 0.34 percent | — | Jan 1, 1985 | Rossi (2010), Page 28, Table 6.1 — Rossi, M.E., 2010, NI 43-101 technical report—Stage II (South Lens) resource estimate, Kings Valley project, Orovada, Humboldt County, Nevada, USA, prepared for Western Lithium USA Corporation [Effective date May 15, 2010]: Boca Raton, Florida, USA, GeoSystems International, Inc., May 15, 115 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com.] |
| sodium (Na) | Measured | — | 1.13 percent | — | Jan 1, 2016 | Carew and Rossi (2016), Page 58, Table 13.1 — Carew, T.J., and Rossi, M.E., 2016, Independent technical report for the Lithium Nevada project, Nevada, USA, prepared for Lithium Americas Corp. [Effective date May 31, 2016]: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, SRK Consulting Inc., June 2, 119 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com.] |
| lithium (Li) | Inferred | — | 0.26 percent | — | Jan 1, 2010 | Carew and Rossi (2016), Page 91, Table 13.11 — Carew, T.J., and Rossi, M.E., 2016, Independent technical report for the Lithium Nevada project, Nevada, USA, prepared for Lithium Americas Corp. [Effective date May 31, 2016]: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, SRK Consulting Inc., June 2, 119 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com.] |
| potassium (K) | Inferred | — | 3.83 percent | — | Jan 1, 2010 | Carew and Rossi (2016), Page 91, Table 13.11 — Carew, T.J., and Rossi, M.E., 2016, Independent technical report for the Lithium Nevada project, Nevada, USA, prepared for Lithium Americas Corp. [Effective date May 31, 2016]: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, SRK Consulting Inc., June 2, 119 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com.] |
| fluorine (F) | Indicated | — | 0.57 percent | — | Jan 1, 2010 | Carew and Rossi (2016), Page 91, Table 13.11 — Carew, T.J., and Rossi, M.E., 2016, Independent technical report for the Lithium Nevada project, Nevada, USA, prepared for Lithium Americas Corp. [Effective date May 31, 2016]: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, SRK Consulting Inc., June 2, 119 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com.] |
| fluorine (F) | Inferred | — | 0.58 percent | — | Jan 1, 2010 | Carew and Rossi (2016), Page 91, Table 13.11 — Carew, T.J., and Rossi, M.E., 2016, Independent technical report for the Lithium Nevada project, Nevada, USA, prepared for Lithium Americas Corp. [Effective date May 31, 2016]: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, SRK Consulting Inc., June 2, 119 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com.] |
| sodium (Na) | Indicated | — | 1.55 percent | — | Jan 1, 2010 | Carew and Rossi (2016), Page 91, Table 13.11 — Carew, T.J., and Rossi, M.E., 2016, Independent technical report for the Lithium Nevada project, Nevada, USA, prepared for Lithium Americas Corp. [Effective date May 31, 2016]: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, SRK Consulting Inc., June 2, 119 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com.] |
| lithium (Li) | Unclassified | — | 0.33 percent | — | Jan 1, 1985 | Rossi (2010), Page 28, Table 6.1 — Rossi, M.E., 2010, NI 43-101 technical report—Stage II (South Lens) resource estimate, Kings Valley project, Orovada, Humboldt County, Nevada, USA, prepared for Western Lithium USA Corporation [Effective date May 15, 2010]: Boca Raton, Florida, USA, GeoSystems International, Inc., May 15, 115 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com.] |
| sodium (Na) | Inferred | — | 1.43 percent | — | Jan 1, 2010 | Carew and Rossi (2016), Page 91, Table 13.11 — Carew, T.J., and Rossi, M.E., 2016, Independent technical report for the Lithium Nevada project, Nevada, USA, prepared for Lithium Americas Corp. [Effective date May 31, 2016]: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, SRK Consulting Inc., June 2, 119 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com.] |
| potassium (K) | Indicated | — | 3.66 percent | — | Jan 1, 2010 | Carew and Rossi (2016), Page 91, Table 13.11 — Carew, T.J., and Rossi, M.E., 2016, Independent technical report for the Lithium Nevada project, Nevada, USA, prepared for Lithium Americas Corp. [Effective date May 31, 2016]: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, SRK Consulting Inc., June 2, 119 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com.] |
| lithium (Li) | Indicated | — | 0.27 percent | — | Jan 1, 2010 | Carew and Rossi (2016), Page 91, Table 13.11 — Carew, T.J., and Rossi, M.E., 2016, Independent technical report for the Lithium Nevada project, Nevada, USA, prepared for Lithium Americas Corp. [Effective date May 31, 2016]: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, SRK Consulting Inc., June 2, 119 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com.] |
| lithium (Li) | Unclassified | — | 0.37 percent | — | Jan 1, 1985 | Rossi (2010), Page 28, Table 6.1 — Rossi, M.E., 2010, NI 43-101 technical report—Stage II (South Lens) resource estimate, Kings Valley project, Orovada, Humboldt County, Nevada, USA, prepared for Western Lithium USA Corporation [Effective date May 15, 2010]: Boca Raton, Florida, USA, GeoSystems International, Inc., May 15, 115 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com.] |
| lithium (Li) | Unclassified | — | 0.34 percent | — | Jan 1, 1985 | Rossi (2010), Page 28, Table 6.1 — Rossi, M.E., 2010, NI 43-101 technical report—Stage II (South Lens) resource estimate, Kings Valley project, Orovada, Humboldt County, Nevada, USA, prepared for Western Lithium USA Corporation [Effective date May 15, 2010]: Boca Raton, Florida, USA, GeoSystems International, Inc., May 15, 115 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com.] |
| lithium (Li) | Unclassified | — | 0.31 percent | — | Jan 1, 1985 | Rossi (2010), Page 28, Table 6.1 — Rossi, M.E., 2010, NI 43-101 technical report—Stage II (South Lens) resource estimate, Kings Valley project, Orovada, Humboldt County, Nevada, USA, prepared for Western Lithium USA Corporation [Effective date May 15, 2010]: Boca Raton, Florida, USA, GeoSystems International, Inc., May 15, 115 p. [Also available at http://sedar.com.] |
Exploration and site history
- Site: “The Thacker Pass Project is located in Humboldt County in northern Nevada approximately 100 km north-northwest of Winnemucca, about 33 km west-northwest of Orovada, Nevada and 33 km due south of the Oregon border. The Thacker Pass Project is situated at the southern end of the McDermitt Caldera in T44N, R35E within Sections 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 15, 16, and 17. The project area is located on the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Thacker Pass 7.5-minute quadrangle at an approximate elevation of 1,500 m. The Thacker Pass Project area now encompasses approximately 3,367 ha.” (Ehsani and others (2018))
- Evaluation — NI 43-101 compliant report, 2012 (Schneider and others (2012))
- Evaluation — NI 43-101 compliant report, 2008 (Eggleston (2008))
- Discovery — Discovery is considered 1975 when Chevron began exploration of the McDermitt caldera area, 1975 (Rossi (2010))
- Evaluation — NI 43-101 compliant report, 2008 (Eggleston and Hertel (2008))
- Evaluation — NI 43-101 compliant report, 2017 (Carew and Rossi (2016))
- Evaluation — NI 43-101 compliant report, 2014 (Carew and others (2014))
- Evaluation — NI 43-101 compliant report, 2009 (Ajie and others (2009))
- Evaluation — NI 43-101 compliant report, 2018 (Fourie and Peldiak (2018))
- Evaluation — NI 43-101 compliant report, 2018 (Ehsani and others (2018))
- Exploration — Intermittent exploration drilling by multiple companies, 2010–2018 (Schneider and others (2012))
- Exploration — Western Lithium Corp. drilled 38 core holes to confirm the mineralization indicated by the previous Chevron drilling, 2009–2010 (Rossi (2010))
- Evaluation — NI 43-101 compliant report, 2010 (Rossi (2010))
Sources
- U.S. Geological Survey · published Jun 1, 2020 · retrieved Aug 18, 2026 · archive