3
one of the largest and highest-grade brine lithium deposit
in the world with ~800 mg/L cut-off grade (SEC, 2023).
According to a 2023 SEC pre-feasibility study for the Silver
Peak lithium operation in Nevada, a cut-off grade of ~50
mg/L has been adopted for several lithium brine projects in
North America. Setting an exploration cut-off grade of ~50
mg/L for a brine deposit could still be considered prospec-
tive, particularly with improved extraction technology.
The Greenbushes Mine in Australia, which is the larg-
est and highest grade pegmatite lithium deposit has between
0.5–0.7% Li2O (SEC, 2023). Similar projects with cut-off
grades around 0.4% Li2O might still be considered attractive
for further exploration, depending on deposit size, mining
and processing methods as well as other economic factors.
PRELIMINARY CONCLUSION
Incorporating established cut-off grade (as benchmarks)
into mineral exploration strategies can enhance the effec-
tiveness of target prioritization and increase the chances of
successful mines. This approach can be achieved by catego-
rizing deposits of active mines into low, medium, and high
targets based on their cut-off grades, which provide a struc-
tured framework for exploration.
By regularly updating benchmarking data to reflect
evolving market conditions, operational costs, and techno-
logical advancements, exploration grades can be set at 90%
of the lowest cut-off grade of operating mines to ensure that
potential deposits compares with operational thresholds.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
This report is part of on-going studies of mineral resources
in New Mexico, supported by the New Mexico Bureau
of Geology and Mineral Resources (NMBGMR), Mike
Timmons, Director and State Geologist. Current research
is funded through a DOE grant Carbon Ore, Rare Earth
Elements, and Critical Minerals (CORE-CM) assess-
ment of San Juan River-Raton Coal Basin, New Mexico,
DE-FE0032051. The content of this report should not be
considered final and is subject to revision based upon new
information. The views and opinions of authors expressed
therein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United
States Government or any agency thereof.
REFERENCES
[1] Bauer, D., Diamond, D., Li, J., Sandalow, D., Telleen,
P., &Wanner, B. (2011). Critical materials strategy.
U.S. Department of Energy.
[2] Castor, S. B., &Hedrick, J. B. (2006). Rare earth
elements. Industrial Minerals and Rocks: Commodities,
Markets, and Uses, 769–792.
[3] Hu, Z., &Gao, S. (2008). “Upper Crustal Abundances
of Trace Elements: A Revision and Update.” Chemical
Geology, 253(3–4), 205–221.
[4] International Energy Agency. (2021). The Role of
Critical Minerals in Clean Energy Transitions. Retrieved
from https://www.iea.org/reports/the-role-of-critical
-minerals-in-clean-energy-transitions.
[5] McLemore, V.T. (2020), “Critical minerals in New
Mexico work needed to realize resources,” Mining
Engineering, v. 72, no. 2, pp. 31–31, https://
me.smenet.org/abstract.cfm?preview=1&articleID=
9501&page=31.
[6] Moon, C.J., Whateley, M.K.G., &Evans, A.M.
(2006). Introduction to Mineral Exploration.
Wiley-Blackwell.
[7] Nassar, N. T., Brainard, J., Gulley, A., Manley,
R., Matos, G., Lederer, G., &Fortier, S. (2020).
Evaluating the mineral commodity supply risk of the
US manufacturing sector. Science Advances, 6(8),
eaay8647.
[8] NS Energy. (2020). Mountain Pass Rare Earth Mine.
[9] Park, J., et al. (2012). “Chemical Composition of
the Continental Crust as Revealed by Studies in East
Asia.” Geochemical Journal, 46(4), 297–312.
[10] Rendu, J. M. (2014). An Introduction to Cut-off
Grade Estimation (2nd ed.). Society for Mining,
Metallurgy, and Exploration.
[11] Rudnick, R. L., &Gao, S. (2003). “Composition
of the Continental Crust.” In The Crust (Vol. 3,
pp. 1–64). Elsevier-Pergamon.
[12] SEC, 2021, Annual report pursuant to section 13 or
15(d) of the securities exchange act of 1934.
[13] SEC Technical Report Summary, Pre-Feasibility
Study -Greenbushes Mine, Western Australia 2023.
[14] SEC Technical Report Summary, Pre-Feasibility
Study -Salar de Atacama Región II, Chile, 2023.
[15] SEC Technical Report Summary, Pre-Feasibility
Study – Silver Peak Lithium Operation- Nevada,
USA dated February 14, 2023.
[16] Statista. (2023). Share of global rare earths produc-
tion in China from 2016 to 2023. Retrieved from
https://www.statista.com/statistics/1294393/share
-of-global-rare-earths-production-in-china/.
[17] Zheng, MP., et al., (2023) Classification and mineral-
ization of global lithium deposits and lithium extrac-
tion technologies for exogenetic lithium deposits.
China Geology 6 (2023) 547−566.
[18] https://patriotbatterymetals.com/patriot-files-ni
-43-101-technical-report-on-the-cv5-mineral
-resource-estimate-corvette-property-quebec-canada/.
one of the largest and highest-grade brine lithium deposit
in the world with ~800 mg/L cut-off grade (SEC, 2023).
According to a 2023 SEC pre-feasibility study for the Silver
Peak lithium operation in Nevada, a cut-off grade of ~50
mg/L has been adopted for several lithium brine projects in
North America. Setting an exploration cut-off grade of ~50
mg/L for a brine deposit could still be considered prospec-
tive, particularly with improved extraction technology.
The Greenbushes Mine in Australia, which is the larg-
est and highest grade pegmatite lithium deposit has between
0.5–0.7% Li2O (SEC, 2023). Similar projects with cut-off
grades around 0.4% Li2O might still be considered attractive
for further exploration, depending on deposit size, mining
and processing methods as well as other economic factors.
PRELIMINARY CONCLUSION
Incorporating established cut-off grade (as benchmarks)
into mineral exploration strategies can enhance the effec-
tiveness of target prioritization and increase the chances of
successful mines. This approach can be achieved by catego-
rizing deposits of active mines into low, medium, and high
targets based on their cut-off grades, which provide a struc-
tured framework for exploration.
By regularly updating benchmarking data to reflect
evolving market conditions, operational costs, and techno-
logical advancements, exploration grades can be set at 90%
of the lowest cut-off grade of operating mines to ensure that
potential deposits compares with operational thresholds.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
This report is part of on-going studies of mineral resources
in New Mexico, supported by the New Mexico Bureau
of Geology and Mineral Resources (NMBGMR), Mike
Timmons, Director and State Geologist. Current research
is funded through a DOE grant Carbon Ore, Rare Earth
Elements, and Critical Minerals (CORE-CM) assess-
ment of San Juan River-Raton Coal Basin, New Mexico,
DE-FE0032051. The content of this report should not be
considered final and is subject to revision based upon new
information. The views and opinions of authors expressed
therein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United
States Government or any agency thereof.
REFERENCES
[1] Bauer, D., Diamond, D., Li, J., Sandalow, D., Telleen,
P., &Wanner, B. (2011). Critical materials strategy.
U.S. Department of Energy.
[2] Castor, S. B., &Hedrick, J. B. (2006). Rare earth
elements. Industrial Minerals and Rocks: Commodities,
Markets, and Uses, 769–792.
[3] Hu, Z., &Gao, S. (2008). “Upper Crustal Abundances
of Trace Elements: A Revision and Update.” Chemical
Geology, 253(3–4), 205–221.
[4] International Energy Agency. (2021). The Role of
Critical Minerals in Clean Energy Transitions. Retrieved
from https://www.iea.org/reports/the-role-of-critical
-minerals-in-clean-energy-transitions.
[5] McLemore, V.T. (2020), “Critical minerals in New
Mexico work needed to realize resources,” Mining
Engineering, v. 72, no. 2, pp. 31–31, https://
me.smenet.org/abstract.cfm?preview=1&articleID=
9501&page=31.
[6] Moon, C.J., Whateley, M.K.G., &Evans, A.M.
(2006). Introduction to Mineral Exploration.
Wiley-Blackwell.
[7] Nassar, N. T., Brainard, J., Gulley, A., Manley,
R., Matos, G., Lederer, G., &Fortier, S. (2020).
Evaluating the mineral commodity supply risk of the
US manufacturing sector. Science Advances, 6(8),
eaay8647.
[8] NS Energy. (2020). Mountain Pass Rare Earth Mine.
[9] Park, J., et al. (2012). “Chemical Composition of
the Continental Crust as Revealed by Studies in East
Asia.” Geochemical Journal, 46(4), 297–312.
[10] Rendu, J. M. (2014). An Introduction to Cut-off
Grade Estimation (2nd ed.). Society for Mining,
Metallurgy, and Exploration.
[11] Rudnick, R. L., &Gao, S. (2003). “Composition
of the Continental Crust.” In The Crust (Vol. 3,
pp. 1–64). Elsevier-Pergamon.
[12] SEC, 2021, Annual report pursuant to section 13 or
15(d) of the securities exchange act of 1934.
[13] SEC Technical Report Summary, Pre-Feasibility
Study -Greenbushes Mine, Western Australia 2023.
[14] SEC Technical Report Summary, Pre-Feasibility
Study -Salar de Atacama Región II, Chile, 2023.
[15] SEC Technical Report Summary, Pre-Feasibility
Study – Silver Peak Lithium Operation- Nevada,
USA dated February 14, 2023.
[16] Statista. (2023). Share of global rare earths produc-
tion in China from 2016 to 2023. Retrieved from
https://www.statista.com/statistics/1294393/share
-of-global-rare-earths-production-in-china/.
[17] Zheng, MP., et al., (2023) Classification and mineral-
ization of global lithium deposits and lithium extrac-
tion technologies for exogenetic lithium deposits.
China Geology 6 (2023) 547−566.
[18] https://patriotbatterymetals.com/patriot-files-ni
-43-101-technical-report-on-the-cv5-mineral
-resource-estimate-corvette-property-quebec-canada/.