The project’s 65 placer mining claims total ~2,450 acres (3.83 square miles), covering the center of an identified gravity low to the east of Nevada’s Lithium-producing Clayton Valley. In April of 2011, ALS Minerals assayed a rock sample from the Jackson Wash property, which was determined to be anomalous in Lithium at 68.8 ppm (at 0.1 ppm limit of reporting).
The Jackson Wash project lies to the immediate east of the Montezuma Range. To the immediate west of the range lies the Clayton Valley playa, where Lithium-rich brines and evaporates have been accumulating for more than 30,000 years, resulting in the highest Lithium content found in any brines tested by the US Geological Survey (USGS) in southwestern US playas and basins[1].
The only US-based Lithium producing plant is also situated in Clayton Valley, and is operated by Chemetall Foote Corporation, a subsidiary of Rockwood Holdings, Inc. The plant has been in production since 1967, producing an estimated 50 million kg (55,000+ tons) of Lithium to date from the region’s rich brines[2]. In 1975, I.A. Kunasz of the American Institute of Mining estimated the mineral endowment of Clayton Valley to be 750 million kg (826,000+ tons) of Lithium, while a 2000 study by Price, Lechler, Lear and Giles suggested that the weathering of high Lithium-bearing rocks has released significantly more Lithium into the Clayton Valley catchment[2].
The Jackson Wash project location represents excellent logistics for project exploration and development. The state of Nevada represents a mining-friendly state populated with skilled workers. Mining is the largest industry in rural Nevada, and accounts for 87% of total US gold production, making it the third-largest gold producer in the world[3]. The state’s geographical location also provides easy access to the Port of Long Beach – America’s second-busiest seaport with annual trade exceeding $100B – creating potential distribution options for future world markets[4].
Robert Allender, AmeriLithium’s VP of Exploration and Chief Geologist, noted that the various reports in the area suggest at least two possible sources for brines with high Lithium concentrations in the Clayton Valley area. First, it has been suggested that the rhyolitic volcanic rocks that compose Montezuma Peak may be the source of Lithium in sediments and groundwater in the area; chemical leaching of Lithium from these rocks as a result of the action of surface water may be the source of Lithium-rich groundwater and Lithium in area sediments. The report published in 2000 by Price et al indicates the Montezuma Range’s rhyolite is one of the most Lithium-rich rhyolites in the world[5]. A second possible source involves hydrothermally Lithium-enriched groundwater migrating along and upwelling in area faults.
"We’re excited to add a fourth Nevada-based Lithium project to our domestic portfolio," commented Matthew Worrall, AmeriLithium’s Chief Executive Officer. "We now have over 19,000 acres or over 30 square miles of holdings around Clayton Valley’s existing Lithium production. And when we begin exploration on this new acquisition in the short-term, we’ll effectively be able to develop a second stage exploration program across our whole Nevada acreage."
Lithium is a lightweight metal used in a wide range of consumer products the world over: the medical industry uses Lithium as an anti-depressant; industrial uses include glass, ceramic and porcelain enamel manufacture; the aviation industry uses Lithium in alloys. Of particular interest is the use of Lithium for battery production, which has expanded significantly in recent years due to rechargeable Lithium batteries being used increasingly in electrical tools and in the rapidly expanding portable electronics market. Furthermore, the next generation of hybrid and electric vehicles are being designed to use high-capacity Lithium-ion batteries as environmentally-friendly fuel alternatives while the Obama administration has introduced $5 billion in funding and incentives for the development of a secure, domestic battery industry with special focus on Lithium-ion batteries.
AmeriLithium is a publicly traded (NASD OTC BB: AMEL), mining company committed to progressively developing into one of the leading American players in the global Lithium industry. The Company is headquartered in Henderson, NV. AmeriLithium has amassed a Lithium portfolio consisting of ~726,419 acres, including four Nevada-based projects nearby the only Lithium producing plant in the US, a large project in Alberta, Canada, and a project in Western Australia.
