The Canadian company Sigma Lithium Corporation, which is dedicated to using battery-grade sustainable Lithium to power the next generation of electric vehicles, announced that Brazilian regulators had given it an operating license to sell and export the product, and it anticipates initiating production of the metal used in electric vehicle batteries shortly.

The State Secretariat of Environment and Development (SEMAD), the environmental authority for the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais, has authorized Sigma to run its Grota do Cirilo hard rock lithium mine and production plants.

Sigma Lithium's chief executive stated, "The Vancouver-based company should begin its production within days and start shipping Lithium within weeks."

Recently, reports have emerged that market giant Tesla Inc. and its Lithium rival in China, Ganfeng Lithium Corporation, could bid to acquire Sigma Lithium Corporation amidst a race to expand the lithium footprint and control the global supply for the so-called "white gold."

The production of spodumene is anticipated to ramp up steadily in the upcoming months and hit an annual production rate of 270,000 tonnes by July 2023 in Phase 1 of the project.

For the past six years, Sigma Lithium has led the way in terms of social and environmental sustainability in the EV battery materials supply chain.

If the company goes forward with Phases 2 and 3 of the project, it is anticipated to increase the production of battery-grade sustainable Lithium concentrate to 766,000 tonnes annually in a cutting-edge Greentech Lithium plant that uses 100% recycled water and 100% renewable energy.

In 2021, Sigma Lithium Corp. accorded to supply 60,000 tonnes of production to LG Energy Solution Ltd starting this year, and the company is now offering its remaining production on the spot market to customers who will likely process the metal in China wherein, the company is "finding out which client would get the initial shipment." Said Cabral-Gardner.

Cabral-Gardner asserted that Sigma's project is positioned to assure the northern hemisphere's energy transition owing to Brazil's suppressed demand, which is focused on biofuels.

According to the company's projections, the mine will generate $455 million in free cash flow annually during its initial operational period.