Wealth Minerals Files NI 43-101 Report for Atacama

Wealth Minerals (TSXV:WML; OTCQB:WMLLF; SSE:WMLCL; Frankfurt:EJZ), in connection with the previously announced grant to the company of an option to acquire a 100-per-cent royalty-free interest in and to the Atacama lithium project, has filed on SEDAR a National Instrument 43-101 technical report titled “NI 43-101 technical report on the Atacama lithium project, El Loa province, Region II, Republic of Chile” dated March 10, 2017.
“The Report filed today is an important development for Wealth and the Project. The Report provides an independent assessment of Wealth’s lithium brine exploration model and comprehensive recommendations for upcoming exploration and Project evaluation,” stated Henk van Alphen, Wealth’s CEO. “The Salar de Atacama is the only salar in South America where lithium is recovered using conventional evaporation techniques and it hosts approximately 15% of global lithium resources. We are currently applying for permits to move forward with our exploration plans through the remainder of 2017.”
“We encourage shareholders to review the content of this news release and the Report, which outlines the prospective nature of the Company’s land position in the Salar de Atacama and the exploration steps necessary to test the model that lithium-bearing brines exist at depth,” stated Tim McCutcheon, the Company’s President. “Despite being contiguous with existing production facilities, the northern portion of the salar has never before been explored for lithium brine potential, despite the geology and hydrogeology being similar to producing areas.”
Readers are cautioned that lithium production in the Salar de Atacama is from adjacent properties and that Wealth has no interest in or right to acquire any interest in those producing areas. Mineral deposits on adjacent or similar properties and any production thereon or economics with respect thereto are not in any way indicative of mineral deposits on the Project or the potential production from or economics of any future lithium extraction on the Project.
Report Summary
The Project consists of 144 exploration concessions comprising 46,200 hectares in the Salar de Atacama, 220 km east of the northern Chilean city of Antofagasta. The Project is located approximately 30km north of the Soquem Quimica y Minera de Chile (“SQM”) potassium-lithium operation, and about 50km north of Rockwood Holdings Inc. (“Rockwood”) (the Albermarle Corporation’s business unit in Chile). Both SQM and Rockwood produce potassium and lithium from brines at depth in the Salar de Atacama (Figure 1).
The Salar de Atacama is host to more than 15% of the world’s known lithium reserves, and yet exploration and production of lithium has occurred only in the southern portion of the Salar. The proximity of the Project to existing producers strongly suggests that exploration potential is good for the discovery of brines in the northern portion of the Salar, underlying the Project.
The principal origin of lithium in the Salar de Atacama is interpreted to be the lithium-bearing geothermal waters from the El Tatio Geyser Field, located north of the salar. The geothermal fluids enter the northern part of the Salar de Atacama via surface and subsurface flow. Further, the chemistry of the salar brines is almost identical to the chemistry of the geothermal fluids of El Tatio, further strengthening the interpretation that the El Tatio geothermal fluids are the source of lithium and potassium in the Salar.
The geology of the Project is similar to the sedimentary settings of other salars such as Maricunga, La Isla, Olaroz, and Cauchari, where potentially economic lithium resources have been reported by other public and private lithium exploration companies. Regional studies of the Salar de Atacama’s geology, hydrogeology, climate and other factors provide a high-level of understanding of the lithium brine processes in the region, lending credence to the exploration potential of the Project.
Wealth Minerals intends to evaluate the brine potential of the Project by utilizing geophysical methods to better evaluate basin configuration, geologic structure, and the hydrogeology of the concessions, followed by drill testing any targets developed by the initial work (Figure 2).
In order to test the exploration potential for subsurface lithium-bearing brines at the Project, the Report recommends a comprehensive two-phase exploration program. Phase 1 includes geophysical testing, including time domain electromagnetic surveying and potentially gravity and magnetotelluric techniques, to better define the subsurface environment, including basin configuration, sedimentary regimes, and possible brine presence at depth. Contingent on positive results, Phase II is recommended to include drill testing and pump testing, metallurgical testing, permitting, engineering and design, pilot-plant testing and development for production. A Phase I budget of approximately US$550,000 is recommended, followed by the contingent Phase II budget of US$15,500,000.
The Report has been filed by the Company on SEDAR and can be viewed on the SEDAR website, www.sedar.com , and Wealth’s websitewww.wealthminerals.com .
Qualified Person
Mr. John Hiner, a licenced geologist in the state of Washington and SME registered member, is the author of the Report and an independent Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101. Mr. Hiner has reviewed the scientific and technical information from the Report that forms the basis of this news release and has approved the disclosure herein.
About Wealth Minerals Ltd.
Wealth is a mineral resource company with interests in Canada, Mexico, Peru and Chile. The Company’s main focus is the acquisition of lithium projects in South America. To date, the Company has positioned itself to develop the Aguas Calientes Norte, Pujsa and Quisquiro Salars in Chile (the Trinity Project), as well as to work alongside existing producers in the prolific Atacama Salar, in addition to its recently announced Laguna Verde lithium project acquisition. The Company continues to aggressively pursue new acquisitions in the region. Lithium market dynamics and a rapidly increasing metal price are the result of profound structural issues with the industry meeting anticipated future demand. Wealth is positioning itself to be a major beneficiary of this future mismatch of supply and demand. The Company also maintains and continues to evaluate a portfolio of precious and base metal exploration-stage projects.
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