Vancouver’s Sage Potash Corp. (TSX-V: SAGE) (OTC: SGPTF) has chosen to form a lithium-focused United States subsidiary to explore mineral-rich areas of the Paradox Basin in Colorado and Utah.
The potash miner announced the formation of Sage Lithium Corp. on Monday. Its primary goal will be to test for lithium and other minerals within the company’s vast mineral lease portfolio following reports of high concentrations of lithium, potassium and bromine from previous oil and gas wells there.
Sage believes those reports indicate a strong potential for intersecting “super-saturated” brines containing up to 40 per cent minerals and 60 per cent water.
Sage Potash is currently in the process of obtaining authorization to drill two exploration wells intended to function as an initial pilot production well and brine disposal well. Meanwhile, Sage Lithium is currently sampling and analyzing strata/rocks/minerals that may indicate potential feasibility for brine extraction of lithium and other commodities in the area.
The private mineral lease portfolio owned by Sage Potash spans 17,277 acres and the company says the Paradox Basin has been the focus of several other lithium explorers.
Sage Potash Expands with Sage Lithium: Unlocking the Paradox Basin's Mineral Potential 🔑
WATCH 👇 https://t.co/O8w6AlixXP
🇨🇦 TSX-V: $SAGE.V | 🇺🇸 OTC: $SGPTF#Potash #Lithium #Mining #Exploration #Investing— Sage Potash (TSX-V: SAGE | OTC: SGPTF) (@Sage_Potash) June 26, 2023
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Sage thinks that the historic oil and gas wells within the Paradox Basin were rarely ever analyzed for lithium. However, limited samples taken from these wells displayed significant concentrations of the element varying from 66 parts per million (ppm) to 1,700 ppm.
“When we included ‘saline mineral rights’ in our initial private mineral leases, we didn’t realize at the time how much lithium interest would develop in the Paradox Basin/Lisbon Valley,” said Peter Hogendoorn, CEO of Sage Potash.
“Using Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile S.A. (NYSE: SQM) as a model, which can be considered either the world’s lowest cost lithium producer or potash producer, management believes there is a significant opportunity to leverage both the geology and its lease rights to add considerable shareholder value for multiple complementary mineral development streams, or as an eventual company spin-off.”
Other lithium companies operating in the Paradox Basin include American Potash Corp. (CSE: KCL), owner of the Paradox Basin Lithium and Brine Project; Mandrake Resources Limited (ASX: MAN), operator of the Utah Lithium Project; and Anson Resources (OTC: ANSNF) (ASX: ASN).
Potash is a group of minerals consisting of potassium salt and potassium carbonate and 95 per cent of the world’s potash is used for fertilizers, according to the University of Waterloo.
Sage Potash shares rose by 5.26 per cent Tuesday to $0.40 on the TSX Venture Exchange.
rowan@mugglehead.com
