RB Energy's Quebec Lithium Produces High Quality Battery Grade Lithium Carbonate
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Mar 17, 2014) - RB Energy Inc. (the "Company" or "RBI" or RB Energy") (TSX:RBI) (OTCQX:RBEIF) is pleased to provide an update on operations at its 100% owned Quebec Lithium mine located near Val d'Or, Quebec.
The hydro-metallurgical circuit of the lithium plant has now been operating in commissioning mode for five weeks and is producing a very high quality battery grade lithium carbonate product (99.9% lithium carbonate). The first samples from this commissioning run are being sent to our off take partners this week for quality testing.
Production from this initial run will continue through to the end of the month, whereupon operations will be temporarily suspended to allow for normal commissioning checks. The plant is then scheduled to recommence operations in mid-April, ramping up to commercial production levels in Q3 2014 and then "name plate" levels (20,000 tonnes battery grade lithium carbonate per annum) by the end of 2014.
Commenting on the achievement of producing a high quality battery grade product from this continuous commissioning run, Richard P. Clark, President and CEO stated, "I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate and thank our operations team for their hard work and commitment in achieving this significant milestone in the growth of RB Energy. The high quality of battery grade lithium carbonate from this run supports the conviction of our Board, management, employees and our investors in the quality of our Quebec Lithium mine and the state of the art caliber of our production facility. Having confirmed the quality of our lithium carbonate product, we will now proceed to increase production towards commercial and name plate levels."
Quebec Lithium is 100% owned by RB Energy Inc. and is the only hard rock mining and processing operation of lithium in North America.
About RB Energy Inc.
RBI is a Canadian company formed pursuant to the arrangement involving Sirocco Mining Inc. and Canada Lithium Corp. It currently owns Aguas Blancas, an iodine producing mine in northern Chile, and the Quebec Lithium Project near Val d'Or, the geographical heart of the Quebec mining industry. The Aguas Blancas mine is currently in production. The Quebec Lithium Project has completed construction and is in the commissioning phase. For more information regarding RBI, please refer to its public filings available at www.sedar.com.
The technical contents of this release have been reviewed by Mr. Kevin Ross, Eur. Ing., a Qualified Person pursuant to NI-43-101. Mr. Ross is Chief Operating Officer of the Company and a Member of The Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain information contained in this news release, including any information relating to the state of the lithium and iodine industries; statements regarding our ability and the timing to achieve and sustain commercial production and name-plate production levels of iodine; our ability to secure commercial orders from our customers; and our ability to become a material player in the lithium market are "forward-looking statements". These forward-looking statements relate to future events or future performance and reflect the Company's expectations regarding the future growth, results of operations, business prospects and opportunities of RBI. These forward-looking statements also reflect the Company's current internal projections, expectations or beliefs and are based on information currently available to the Company. In some cases forward-looking information can be identified by terminology such as "may", "will", "should", "expect", "intend", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "projects", "potential", "scheduled", "forecast", "budget" or the negative of those terms or other comparable terminology. The estimates and assumptions of RBI underlying the forward-looking statements in this news release may prove to be incorrect. Assumptions upon which such forward looking information include, among other things, successful and timely commissioning, ramp-up and production at the Québec Lithium Project; the lack of any further significant capital expenditures during the commissioning stage or to bring the hydrometallurgical process plant into production; the continuing support and cooperation of RBI's off-take partners; as well as financial predictions premised on such assumptions. Although the Company believes that the forward-looking information contained in this news release is based on reasonable assumptions, readers cannot be assured that actual results will be consistent with such statements. Accordingly, readers are cautioned against placing undue reliance on forward-looking information. RBI expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, events or otherwise, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.
On behalf of the Board,
Richard P. Clark, President and CEO