Huge lithium reserves lie beneath Czech Cínovec

The original project of four Czech geologists has sparked worldwide interest: according to exploration drilling carried out so far, the Cínovec area is rich in lithium. Calculations indicate that it contains nearly 6 % of global lithium reserves. Australian company European Metals has already expressed interest in potential mining.

European Metals plans to begin another series of drillings this June in order to precisely delineate the entire area containing the lithium reserves. Mining is expected to begin in 2018, according to chief executive Keith Coughlan.

Cínovec came onto the Australian company's radar because of growing demand for lithium on the global market. The price of lithium rose sharply at the beginning of this year. A tonne of lithium currently sells for roughly 10 thousand dollars. This sharp price increase is being driven by demand in the Chinese market, where lithium is in short supply despite the country's large domestic deposits.

Deposit profitability assured

Jaromír Starý of the Czech Geological Survey tempers some of the optimism surrounding the Czech lithium deposit.

„It is an impressive deposit in terms of the quantity of metals, but the ore is relatively low-grade.“

Jaromír Starý bases his statement on the global average lithium content in ore, which ranges from around 0.4 to 0.8 %, while in the case of Cínovec, the lithium content is only around 0.2 %.

However, he also says that the deposit's economic viability is beyond doubt. The area also contains large deposits of tungsten, tin, rubidium and caesium, which will likewise be processed and commercially utilised during mining.

Source of main photograph: Dnn87