Smackover-Tetra

Location: Arkansas, United States (33.284, -93.513 approx.)

Commodities: lithium

Deposit model: lithium-enriched oilfield brine · unclassified

Geology

“The focus of the mineral resource estimate is the Upper and Middle Smackover formations. The Upper Smackover Formation consists of clean, porous, ooidal grainstone and other less porous materials. Directly below the Upper Smackover Formation is the Middle Formation composed of porous materials identified from the electric logs. Both formations are laterally continuous across the entire Tetra Property. The Upper and Middle Smackover formations are also extended in a north-south orientation due to the presence of an east-west trending normal fault on the Tetra Property. It should be noted that based upon the porosities and permeabilities from the core plug samples and electric well logs within the Upper and Middle Smackover formations these two units will act as a single hydrogeological unit. That is, there is no laterally continuous low permeability layer or confining unit separating the Upper Smackover Formation from the Middle Smackover Formation.” (Eccles and others (2019))

Published resource estimates

As compiled by USGS USMIN from the cited studies. Resource classes follow the source; "approximate" flags values USMIN reports as approximations. These are not current company reserve statements.

Exploration and site history

• Resources: “The aquifer associated with the Upper and Middle Smackover formations is a confined aquifer situated between upper- and lower-bounding aquitards. The average hydraulic conductivity is 4.4 x 10-7 m/s, transmissivity is 2.7 x 10-5 m2/s and storativity of the aquifer is 2.4 x 10-5. An average effective porosity of 10.1% was geostatistically-derived for the main resource. The maiden inferred Tetra lithium-brine resource estimation, which is presented as a total (or global value), was estimated using the following relation in consideration of the North and South resource areas, and the Upper and Middle Smackover formations within those resource areas: Lithium Resource = Total Volume of the Brine-Bearing Aquifer × Average Effective Porosity × Percentage of Brine in the Pore Space × Average Concentration of Lithium in the Brine. The main maiden inferred Tetra lithium-brine resource is estimated at 151,000 tonnes of elemental Li (166,000 tons elemental Li; Table 1). The total lithium carbonate equivalent (“LCE”) for the main resource is 802,000 tonnes LCE (884,000 tons LCE).” (Eccles and others (2019))
• Site: “The property encompasses Townships 16-17 South and Ranges 22-24 West of the 5th Meridian. The center of Tetra Property is located approximately 24 km (15 miles) west of the City of Magnolia in Lafayette and Columbia Counties, Arkansas, United States. Coordinates for the property center are: Latitude 33.2843 and Longitude -93.5135; or Universal Transverse Mercator 452185.15 Easting, 3682922.78 Northing, Zone 15N, North American Datum 83. The Tetra Property consists of 11,033 net mineral hectares (27,262 net mineral acres) and covers about 110 km2 (42 square miles) and is comprised of 489 land tracts containing 802 individual leases and 8 salt water (brine) deeds from private mineral owners.” (Eccles and others (2019))
• Exploration — Standard Lithium Ltd., conducted a 2018 exploration program consisting of historical geological and subsurface reviews of the Smackover Formation, and analyzing core samples from multiple wells, 2018 (Eccles and others (2019))
• Evaluation — NI 43-101 compliant report, 2019 (Eccles and others (2019))

Record imported from USGS USMIN ver. 4.0 (June 2019). Developments after that date appear on facility records, not here; see the methodology.