Name of the Project
Bougouni lithium project.

Location
Southern Mali.

Project Owner/s
Mineral exploration and development company Kodal Minerals’ Mali-registered mining company, Les Mines de Lithium de Bougouni (LMLB), a subsidiary of Kodal Mining UK, in which Kodal has a 49% shareholding in partnership with Hainan Mining holding the controlling share of 51%.

Project Description
Bougouni’s mineral resource comprises three advanced prospects – Sogola-Baoulé, Ngoualana and Boumou.

Stage 1 of the project will include the processing of coarse-grained spodumene material from the Ngoualana deposit, feeding one-million tonnes a year of lithium ore to a dense-media separation (DMS) processing plant. A conventional circuit will be used to maximise spodumene recovery of more than 125 000 t/y of spodumene concentrate. 

Stage 1 will have an initial four-year life-of-mine (LoM).

Stage 2 will comprise a downstream 350 000 t/y flotation plant that will exploit the finer-grained spodumene resources at Sogola-Baoulé and Boumou, and Bougouni's longer-term exploration prospects. Processing material from Boumou and Sogola-Baoulé deposits will feed two-million tonnes a year of lithium ore to the flotation plant; output from the deposits is estimated at 230 000 t/y.

Stage 2 will have 12-year LoM.

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
Not stated.

Capital Expenditure
Stage 1 involves low capital expenditure of $60-million to $70-million.

Stage 2 will cost about $175-million and will be funded with cash flow from Stage 1.

Planned Start/End Date
Construction on the Bougouni project started in mid-2024. Kodal Minerals produced the first spodumene concentrate in February 2025.

Latest Developments
Kodal Minerals has reported that the Bougouni project remains unaffected by recent security incidents and unrest in parts of the country, with operations continuing as normal.

In a May 5 statement to shareholders, CEO Bernard Aylward said the safety and security of staff at Bougouni had been the company’s priority in recent weeks. He noted that the township of Bougouni had not been affected by the incidents and that the project team, mining contractors and support teams continued to receive support from security services and local government officials.

Operations at the site are continuing, with deliveries of fuel and spare parts being received as required. The export of spodumene concentrate to the Port of San Pedro, in Côte d’Ivoire, also remains unaffected and on schedule.

Kodal has also confirmed that final payment has been received for the second shipment of spodumene concentrate to Hainan Mining. Les Mines de Lithium de Bougouni received $27.6-million for the shipment, which comprised about 19 738 dry metric tonnes (dmt) of concentrate.

A third shipment, comprising about 20 480 dmt, departed the Port of San Pedro on April 12 and is in transit to Hainan. An interim payment of $34.4-million, representing 95% of the estimated cargo value, has been received, with the final payment to be calculated after the shipment arrives in July.

The project continues to mine and process lithium mineralisation and is transporting concentrate to the Port of San Pedro in preparation for the next shipment.

Aylward said the receipt of the final payment for the second shipment and the interim payment for the third shipment reflected stronger spodumene concentrate prices and growing demand in the lithium market. He added that the operation had now generated more than $89-million from its first three shipments, with further shipments expected at regular intervals and targeting cargoes of up to 20 000 dmt.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
None stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
Kodal Minerals, tel +44 20 3463 2260.