Mandrake Resources Secures US$1 Million DoE Grant for Utah Lithium Project

Mandrake Resources (ASX:MAN), in partnership with Idaho National Laboratories (INL), the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and the University of Utah, announced the receipt of US$1 million in grant funding for the Utah lithium project from the US Department of Energy (DoE) on Monday (August 5).

According to the company, the money will come through the DoE’s Geothermal Technologies Office, which is under the Office of Energy, Efficiency and Renewable Energy. It will be used to characterise and estimate reserves of lithium and other critical minerals in Utah's Paradox Basin, located in the state's "lithium four corners" area.

“Grant funds are always welcome, but of most importance to the company is the building of strong partnerships with leading US government agencies and leveraging those partnerships to progress the Utah Lithium Project,” said James Allchurch, managing director of Mandrake. He sees the grant as a strong vote of confidence from the US government.

Allchurch added that Mandrake's partnerships with INL, NREL and the University of Utah open up opportunities for the company to work with US scientists and sophisticated US-funded laboratories. INL and NREL also have “a deep understanding of the critical minerals space,” and are expected to bring an immense skillset related to lithium brines.

The company confirmed partial acquisition of the Utah lithium project in May 2023, securing over 80,000 acres prospective for lithium brines in the Paradox Basin. It now fully owns 93,755 acres, or 379 square kilometres.

In January, Mandrake announced "exceptional lithium concentrations" at the asset as part of a preliminary lithium brine sampling program, reporting 147 milligrams per litre. Two months later, the company shared a maiden lithium exploration target for the site, ranging from 1.7 million to 5.6 million tonnes of contained lithium carbonate equivalent.

Work has commenced on potentially converting the exploration target to a mineral resource estimate.

Mandrake said it has applied for three other DoE grants, with results expected in the months to come.

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Securities Disclosure: I, Gabrielle de la Cruz, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.