Savannah completes definitive feasibility study for contested lithium mine

British-based company Savannah Resources has completed the Definitive Feasibility Study for the lithium mine at Boticas, confirming an initial mine life of 14 years and a probable ore reserve of 20 million tonnes.

“We are delighted to publish the key findings of the Definitive Feasibility Study for the project’s first production phase. This is yet another very important milestone for the development of the Barroso lithium project and the culmination of many years of work carried out by our team and some of the sector’s most experienced international consultants,” said Savannah’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Emanuel Proença, in a statement.

The company expects construction to begin in 2027, in the municipality of Boticas, in the district of Vila Real, on this project, which was granted a conditional favourable Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in 2023. The project is opposed by local residents, local councillors, environmentalists and free thinkers.

According to the company, the study confirms an initial operational life of 14 years for the project, supported by an initial JORC (the Australasian Joint Ore Reserves Committee) probable reserve of 20 million tonnes of ore.

During this period, production of approximately 2.56 million tonnes of spodumene concentrate is forecast, sufficient raw material for more than seven million electric vehicle batteries.

According to the company, “the way is also being paved for a possible extension of the project’s operational life to more than 40 years in the future”.

Savannah considered that “the results obtained also demonstrate strong international competitiveness”, concluding further that “it is more competitive than more than 50% of the projects currently in operation worldwide”.

The project is also expected to create around 500 permanent jobs at the plant, offices and mine, and more than 1,000 indirect and induced jobs.

The study also estimates a contribution of approximately €720 million in taxes, duties and royalties to Portugal, but Savannah stated that the “benefits for the Barroso region go beyond direct economic activity”, noting that, over the past year, it has signed more than 10 memoranda of understanding and other agreements on cooperation with local authorities, covering social, cultural, educational and economic areas.

In this regard, it added that the future Savannah Foundation “will enable the further development of initiatives of community interest and strengthen support for long-term regional development”.

The company also noted that the operating plan had been developed to “meet or exceed Portuguese and European legal requirements”, highlighting the “use of a dry-stack tailings storage system, eliminating the need for a conventional tailings dam, and the implementation of an autonomous water supply and recycling system, reducing water consumption during operations by more than 70%.

In 2025, the Barroso mine was classified by the European Union as a strategic project and, in Portugal, the company signed an investment agreement with the Portuguese Agency for Investment and Foreign Trade (AICEP), which provides for financial support of up to €110 million.

For Savannah, the completion of the study represents “one of the most significant milestones in the development process of any mining project”, thereby placing the “project in a prime position to move on to the next stages”.

“The completion of the study represents the technical, economic, environmental and operational validation of the project in the eyes of investors, banks and commercial partners, providing an unprecedented level of detail on construction, operating and production costs throughout the mine’s and its plant’s operational life,” it explained.

It also places the Barroso lithium project amongst the “most promising in Europe, positioning it to be the second large-scale project to operate in Europe, following the Keliber project in Finland, which has already started production” said the statement.

Source material: LUSA