Silver Peak Lithium Project

Site Name

Primary: Silver Peak Lithium Project
Secondary: Silver Peak Marsh
Secondary: Foote Mineral Company Refinery
Secondary: Silver Peak
Secondary: Silver Peak Lithium Operations
Secondary: Clayton Valley

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Commodity

Primary: Lithium
Tertiary: Salt
Tertiary: Potassium
Tertiary: Boron-Borates

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Location

State: Nevada
County: Esmeralda
District: Silver Peak

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Land Status

Land ownership: Private
Note: the land ownership field only identifies whether the area the mine is in is generally on public lands like Forest Service or BLM land, or if it is in an area that is generally private property. It does not definitively identify property status, nor does it indicate claim status or whether an area is open to prospecting. Always respect private property.

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Holdings

Type: Located Claim
Type: Patented

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Workings

Type: Underground

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Ownership

Owner Name: Cyprus Foote Mineral Co.
Company ID: 2601440
Info Year: 1996

Owner Name: Cyprus Amax Minerals Co.
Percent: 100.0
Home Office: Colorado
Info Year: 1996

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Production

Year: 1988
Description: Lico3 15300000 Lb
Year: 1986
Description: Lio2 5566 Metric Tons
Year: 1985
Description: Li2o 5420 Mt/Yr
Year: 1984
Description: Li20 6350 Mt/Yr
Year: 1983
Description: Li2o 6280 Mt/Yr
Year: 1982
Description: Li20 990 Mt/Yr
Year: 1981
Description: Li2o 1250 Mt/Yr
Year: 1980
Description: 2524 Mt/Yr Of L120
Year: 1979
Description: 2559 Mt/Yr Of L120
Year: 1978
Description: 2691 Mt/Yr Of L120
Year: 1977
Description: 2955 Mt/Yr Of L120
Year: 1976
Description: 2611 Mt/Yr Of L120
Year: 1975
Description: 2907 Mt/Yr Of L120
Year: 1974
Description: 2544 Mt/Yr Of L120
Year: 1973
Description: 2111 Mt/Yr Of L120
Year: 1972
Description: 1866 Mt/Yr Of L120
Year: 1971
Description: 1232 Mt/Yr Of L120
Year: 1970
Description: 1394 Mt/Yr Of L120

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Deposit

Record Type: Site
Operation Category: Plant
Plant Type: Leach
Plant Subtype: Hydromet
Operation Type: Processing Plant
Mining Method: In Situ Leach
Milling Method: Leach-Solvent-Extract-Precipitation
Year First Production: 1966
Discovery Year: 1905
Discovery Method: Ore-Mineral In Place
Years of Production:
Organization:
Significant: Y

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Physiography

General Physiographic Area: Intermontane Plateaus
Physiographic Province: Basin And Range Province
Physiographic Section: Great Basin

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Mineral Deposit Model

Not available

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Orebody

Not available

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Structure

Not available

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Alterations

Not available

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Rocks

Not available

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Analytical Data

Not available

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Materials

Unknown: Hectorite
Unknown: Halite
Unknown: Gypsum

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Comments

Comment (Location): MAY ALSO BE MSHA MINES ID 2600709: POSSIBLY USGS LI039 COULD BE TYP-O OF LI0039. NO BOM RESPONDENT ID AVAILABLE. THE OPERATION COVERS A VERY LARGE AREA. THE RECOVERY PLANT IS IN SEC 22 T2S R 39E. THE WELLS AND EVAPORATION PONDS ARE IN THE FOLLOWING SECTIONS; T 1S/R 40E, SEC 32, 33. MINING METHOD IS SOLUTION MINING. MILL IS LOCATED AT SILVER PEAK AND IS CURRENTLY OPERATING. THE MILL METHOD IS SOLAR EVAPORATION, AND CHEMICAL PRECIP. PROCESS RATE IS 1,200 MT/A LITHIUM. PRODUCT TYPE IS LITHIUM CARBONATE. GENERAL LOCATION IS ABOUT 49 KM SW OF TONOPAH.

Comment (Economic Factors): RAW BRINE FROM GROUND(300PPM LI) IS PUMPED INTO SOLAR EVAPORATION PONDS. SOLAR EVAPORATION AND THE ADDING OF LIME INCREASE THE BRINE TO 6000 PPM LI. THE BRINE IS THEN PUMPED 4KM TO THE LITHIUM RECOVERY PLANT. THERE SODA ASH IS ADDED TO THE BRINE CAUSING LI2CO3 TO PRECIPITATE OUT. THE PRECIPITATE IS FILTERED, AND DRIED. SOME OF THE MATERIAL IS LEFT IN POWDER FORM, SOME IS PELLETIZED. BOTH PRODUCTS ARE SHIPPED 84KM BY TRUCK TO THE RAILHEAD AND BAGGING PLANT AT MINA, NV DESIGN CAPITY OF MILL IS UNKNOWN, I ASSUME IT IS NEAR 1200MT YEAR OF LITHIUM 1200 DIVIDED BY 350 IS 3.4286

Comment (Geology): LITHIUM OCCURS AS A CONSTITUENT IN A SUBSURFACE SALINE BRINE WITH HECTORITE AS THE SOURCE OF THE BRINES LITHIUM CONTENT.

Comment (Economic Factors): BRINE IS BROUGHT TO THE SURFACE VIA 49 ACTIVE WELLS 1331 MT/YR OF LI IS BROUGHT TO THE SURFACE 1331 DIVIDED BY 365=3.6466 MT/DAY

Comment (Economic Factors): BRINE GOES FROM THE PONDS TO RECOVERY PLANT VIA PIPELINE. PRODUCT GOES TO THE BAGGING PLANT AND RAILHEAD AT MINA, NV VIA TRUCK. COSTS ARE INCLUDED IN TOTAL OPERATING COSTS

Comment (Reserve-Resource): REF TO COL 2--METRIC TONS LI AS LICO3.

Comment (Economic Factors): THE SILVER PEAK OPERATION IS NOT YOUR AVERAGE MINING OPERATION, THUS IT DOES NOT FIT WELL INTO THE COMPUTER FORMAT. FOR COST DETAILS SEE APPENDIX B-5 OF THE REPORT. FOOTE WOULD SUPPLY NO COST INFO AND ONLY LIMITED PLANT INFO. THE COSTING METHOD USED IS BASED ON ESTIMATING THE LABOR, EQUIP AND SUPPLY COSTS AND ADDING THEM TOGETHER TO GET A TOTAL COST. CAPITAL COSTS WERE NOT ESTIMATED(OTHER THAN WORKING CAPITAL). THIS IS BECAUSE MOST OF THE PLANT AND PONDS WERE BUILT DURING 1964-66 AND HAVE BEEN TOTALLY DEPRECIATED. WELL CONSTRUCTION COST OVER THE YEARS WAS MOST LIKELY EXPENSED AND IS INCLUDED AS AN OPERATING COST. TOTAL COMPLEX OPERATING COST IS ESTIMATED AT $9819153/YR WORKING CAPITAL IS ESTIMATED AT 1660108 9819153 DIVIDED BY 4436667(MT OF RAW BRINE PER YEAR) IS $2.2132/MT ROYALITY OF $141493/YEAR DIVIDED BY 1200(MT OF LI PRODUCED PER YEAR IS $117.91/MT LI. THE YEARLY COMPLEX PRODUCT IS EQUAL TO 1200 MT OF LI. IT IS IN THE FORM OF 99.5% LI2CO3 1200 DIVIDED BY .1879 DIVIDED BY .995 IS 6418MT OF LI2CO3 THE COSTS IN THE REPORT ARE IN TERMS OF LBS OF LITHIUM CARBONATE. 6418 MT IS 14149260 LBS 9819153 DIVIDED BY 14149260 IS $.694/LB ADDING THE 1CENT/LB ROYALITY COST BRINGS THE FINAL OP COST TO $.704/LB LI2CO3

Comment (Names): 1985 FOOTE MINERAL CO IS A SUBSIDIARY OF THE NEWMONT MINING CO.

Comment (Production): RAW BRINE FEED GRADE IS .03% LI, SOLAR EVAPORATION RAISED THE BRINE TO .6% LI. THE PLANT PUTS OUT THE EQUIVALENT OF 1200 MT/YR LI IN THE FORM OF LI2CO3 1200 DIVIDED BY .1879 DIVIDED BY .995 IS 6418 MT/YR OF 99.5% LI2CO3

Comment (Deposit): THE PLAYA COVERS AN AREA OF ABOUT 8300 HA, GEOPHYSICAL WORK SUGGESTS THE PLAYA SEDIMENTS MAY BE AS MUCH AS 460 M THICK LITHIUM IS DISOLVED IN BRINES LOCATED IN INTERSTITIAL PORE SPACES IN THE SEDIMENTS GENERAL SIZE OF ORE BODY IS LARGE. ORE CONTROLLED BY EVAPORATION. TYPE OF ORE BODY IS SUBSURFACE BRINE.

Comment (Economic Factors): BRINE GRADE TO RECOVERY PLANT IS 6000 PPM LI OR .6% THIS IS EQUAL TO 1.293% LI2O

Comment (Reserve-Resource): ADIT "ORE" IN THE BRINE. ADIT GRADE IS WT% LI2O IN BRINES. CAPACITY IS 4,000 MT OF LITHIUM CARBONATE PRODUCED. MINE & MILL SHUT DOWN UNTIL 9-92, THEN STARTED OPERATING AGAIN.

Comment (Geology): ORE IS BRINE.

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References

Reference (Reserve-Resource): CROZIER, R.D. LITHIUM: RESOURCES AND PROSPECTS. MINING

Reference (Reserve-Resource): MAGAZINE, FEB. 1986, PP. 148.

Reference (Reserve-Resource): PROFILE, 1979, 25 PP.

Reference (Reserve-Resource): 638. SINGLETON, R. H. LITHIUM. BUMINES MINERAL COMMODITY

Reference (Reserve-Resource): V. 30, 1978, PP. 283-284.

Reference (Reserve-Resource): 345. KESLER, T. L. RAW LITHIUM SUPPLIES. MIN. ENG. (NY),

Reference (Reserve-Resource): AMERICAN MINES HANDBOOK, 1996, P83.

Reference (Deposit): NEVADA. U.S. GEOL. SURV. OFR 75-333, 1975,

Reference (Deposit): PAPER 1005, 1976, 162 PP.

Reference (Deposit): 804. WILSON, C. W. BOUGUER GRAVITY MAP OF CLAYTON VALLEY,

Reference (Deposit): REQUIREMENTS BY THE YEAR 2000. U.S. GEOL. SURV. PROF.

Reference (Deposit): REPORT 75-86, 1975, 14 PP.

Reference (Deposit): 748. VINE, J. D. (ED.). LITHIUM RESOURCES AND

Reference (Deposit): CASPER, WY, JAN. 3, 1975. U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OPEN FILE

Reference (Deposit): WHY, AND WHERE TO SEARCH. PRES. AT WY GEOL. ASSOC.,

Reference (Deposit): PAPER 55, 1906, 174 PP.

Reference (Deposit): 747. VINE, J. D. LITHIUM IN SEDIMENTS AND BRINES - HOW,

Reference (Deposit): QUADRANGLE, NEVADA. U.S. GEOL. SURV. PROF.

Reference (Deposit): BUMINES IC 8053, 1961, 80 PP.

Reference (Deposit): 677. SPURR, J. E. ORE DEPOSITS OF THE SILVER PEAK

Reference (Deposit): 614. SCHRECK, A. E. LITHIUM: A MATERIALS SURVEY.

Reference (Deposit): SOC. AM. MEMOIR 116, 1968, PP. 577-611.

Reference (Deposit): VOLCANOLOGY - A MEMOIR IN HONOR OF HOWEL WILLIAMS. GEOL.

Reference (Deposit): WESTERN NEVADA AND ADJACENT CALIFORNIA. CH. IN STUDIES IN

Reference (Deposit): CENOZIOC VOLCANISM AND SEDIMENTATION, SILVER PEAK REGION,

Reference (Deposit): 595. ROBINSON, P. T., E. H. MCKEE, AND R. J. MOIOLA.

Reference (Deposit): NV BUREAU OF MINES AND GEOL. BULL. 87, 1976, PP. 29-31.

Reference (Deposit): 544. PAPKE, K. EVAPORITES AND BRINES IN NEVADA PLAYAS.

Reference (Deposit): NEVADA. U.S. GEOL. SURV. OFR 81-962, 1981, 23 PP.

Reference (Deposit): TECTONIC SETTING OF THE LITHIUM BRINE FIELD, CLAYTON

Reference (Deposit): 109. DAVIS, J. R., AND J. D. VINE. STRATIGRAPHIC AND

Reference (Deposit): COMPANIES, P271.

Reference (Deposit): RANDOL MINING DIRECTORY, 1996/97, U.S. MINES & MINING

Reference (Deposit): SCALE 1:62,500.

Reference (Deposit): VALLEY, NEVADA. SEC. IN 1979 BASIN AND RANGE SYMPOSIUM,

Reference (Deposit): V. 2, 1970, PP. 47-50.

Reference (Deposit): DELLWIG. NORTHERN OH GEOL. SOC., INC., CLEVELAND, OHIO,

Reference (Deposit): IN THIRD SYMP. ON SALT, ED. BY J. L. RAU AND L. E.

Reference (Deposit): LITHIUM FROM SALINE BRINES USING SOLAR EVAPORATION. SEC.

Reference (Deposit): 32. BARRETT, W. T., AND B. J. O'NEILL, JR. RECOVERY OF

Reference (Deposit): 78, 1972, 80 PP.

Reference (Deposit): OF ESMERALDA COUNTY, NEVADA. NV BUREAU OF MINES AND GEOL. BULL.

Reference (Deposit): MINERAL DEPOSITS

Reference (Deposit): 8. ALBERS, J. P., AND J. H. STEWART. GEOLOGY AND

Reference (Deposit): MARSH, NEVADA. U.S. GEOL. SURV. BULL. 530, 1913,

Reference (Deposit): UTAH 1979, PP. 421-430.

Reference (Deposit): 117. DOLE, R. B. EXPLORATION OF SALINES IN SILVER PEAK

Reference (Deposit): GEOL., DENVER, CO, AND UT GEOL. ASSOC., SALT LAKE CITY,

Reference (Deposit): ED. BY G. W. NEWMAN AND H. D. GOODE. ROCKY MOUNTAIN ASSOC.

Reference (Deposit): LITHOLOGY AND LITHIUM CONTENT OF SEDIMENTS IN BASIN

Reference (Deposit): 543. PANTEA, M. P., S. ASHER-BOLINDER, AND J. D. VINE.

Reference (Deposit): OFR 82-415, 1982, 13 PP.

Reference (Deposit): VALLEY, ESMERALDA COUNTY, NEVADA. U.S. GEOL. SURV.

Reference (Deposit): LOG AND LITHIUM CONTENT OF SEDIMENTS DRILLED IN CLAYTON

Reference (Deposit): 542. PANTEA, M. P., AND S. ASHER-BOLINDER. LITHOLOGICAL

Reference (Deposit): SURV. PROF. PAPER 820, 1973, PP. 365-378.

Reference (Deposit): RESOURCES, ED. BY D. A. BROBST AND W. P. PRATT. U.S. GEOL.

Reference (Deposit): RARE ALKALI METALS. CH. IN UNITED STATES MINERAL

Reference (Deposit): 535. NORTON, J. J. LITHIUM, CESIUM, AND RUBIDIUM -- THE

Reference (Deposit): SOC. INC., CLEVELAND, OH, V. 1, 1974, PP. 57-66.

Reference (Deposit): SYMPOSIUM ON SALT, ED. BY A. H. COOGAN. NORTHERN OH GEOL.

Reference (Deposit): CLAYTON VALLEY, ESMERALDA COUNTY, NEVADA. SEC. IN FOURTH

Reference (Deposit): 370. KANASZ, I. A. LITHIUM OCCURRENCE IN THE BRINES OF

Reference (Deposit): PA, 1970, 128 PP.

Reference (Deposit): NEVADA. PH.D. DISS., PA STATE UNIV., UNIVERSITY PARK,

Reference (Deposit): LITHIUM DEPOSIT IN CLAYTON VALLEY, ESMERALDA COUNTY,

Reference (Deposit): 369. KUNASZ, I. A. GEOLOGY AND GEOCHEMISTRY OF THE

Reference (Deposit): V. 171, NO. 4, 1970, PP. 71-73.

Reference (Deposit): BRIGHT LOOK TO FOOTE MINERALS COMPANY LITHIUM PICTURE.

Reference (Deposit): PP. 330-345.

Reference (Deposit): 146. ENGINEERING AND MINING JOURNAL. SILVER PEAK GIVES

Reference (Deposit): SURROUNDING CLAYTON VALLEY, ESMERALDA AND NYE COUNTIES,

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Nevada Gold

Nevada has a total of 368 distinct gold districts. Of the of those, just 36 are major producers with production and/or reserves of over 1,000,000 ounces, 49 have production and/or reserves of over 100,000 ounces, with the rest having less than 100,000 ounces. Read more: Gold Districts of Nevada.