Arizona Lithium Limited (AZL), a company dedicated to the long-term development of the Big Sandy Lithium Project, announced the signing of a Strategic Alliance Terms Sheet with Navajo Transitional Energy Company, LLC (NTEC), a limited liability company owned entirely by the Navajo Nation.
The Strategic Alliance Terms Sheet outlines the key terms under which NTEC is proposed to manage the development of Big Sandy, beginning with the permitting needs for additional exploratory drilling and continuing through the Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) and mine construction. The Terms Sheet permits both parties to begin preliminary work on the Big Sandy project while allowing time for additional mutual due diligence and the drafting of a formal definitive agreement (as the Strategic Alliance Terms Sheet is non-binding and does not contain all material terms).
“We are extremely pleased to have entered a Strategic Alliance Terms Sheet with NTEC, as this represents a monumental breakthrough in the sustainable development of Big Sandy. Through our initial agreement, and subject to agreeing definitive agreements, NTEC will take over the operational development of Big Sandy and will manage all aspects from the permitting requirements for additional exploratory drilling process through to mine design, environmental assessments, construction, and contract mining operations for the Project. We look forward to working with such an impressive and professional energy company as we continue to advance Big Sandy to lithium production. I would like to thank shareholders for their support to date, and we look forward to an exciting 2023 for Arizona Lithium,” Managing Director Paul Lloyd said.
NTEC has extensive experience with mining operations and energy projects like Big Sandy. NTEC owns the Navajo Mine, has a 7 per cent stake in the Four Corners Power Plant, and owns and runs mines in Montana and Wyoming. The Navajo Nation is the sole stakeholder of NTEC, which was founded to promote the development of the Navajo Nation’s resources and new sources of energy, electricity, and transmission. NTEC is dedicated to the economic, financial, social, and cultural well-being of the Navajo People and the Navajo Nation, with its operations supporting hundreds of community benefit initiatives.
NTEC was the first business to have a single mine receive both the National Mining Association’s Sentinels of Safety award for exemplary safety performance and the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement’s National Award for Excellence in Surface Mining Reclamation (OSMRE). Both of these distinguished national honours demonstrate NTEC’s dedication to the people and environment of the Navajo Nation and to developing energy solutions that will supply the community with long-term resources.
Both AZL and NTEC are enthusiastic about approaching the project sustainably and fairly which is consistent with the Navajo Nation’s core principles. Furthermore, NTEC and AZL are aware of the cultural significance of the area near the planned mining site. The Company intends to collaborate with the Navajo Nation and other Indian Nations to ensure that cultural and environmental safeguards are prioritised throughout the Big Sandy development process.
If a binding agreement is reached, the Strategic Alliance Terms Sheet stipulates that Vern Lund, Managing Director of NTEC, will be named to the AZL Board, further solidifying the partnership.
, a company dedicated to the long-term development of the Big Sandy Lithium Project, announced the signing of a Strategic Alliance Terms Sheet with Navajo Transitional Energy Company, LLC (NTEC), a limited liability company owned entirely by the Navajo Nation.){kind=link}