Sayona Mining Limited announced a positive prefeasibility study (PFS) for its flagship North American Lithium (NAL) Project in Québec, Canada, confirming the NAL operation's technical and financial viability. The PFS was conducted by Sayona Mining's Canadian subsidiary, Sayona Québec, which is owned by Sayona Mining and Piedmont Lithium. Forming the key part of Sayona's Abitibi lithium hub comprising NAL and the nearby Authier Lithium Project, the restored NAL operation and the Authier deposit, together with the Company's emerging northern Québec hub, comprise North America's largest lithium (spodumene) resource base.

This will allow Sayona to launch production ahead of other North American projects, generating sustainable cash flows and putting the Company on a fast track to go downstream into valueadded lithium hydroxide or carbonate production. Québec is rapidly emerging as a leader in the battery sector, benefitting from its clean and sustainable hydropower, worldclass infrastructure and proximity to market. At NAL, the overriding development objective is for the restart of production, with the benefit of supplementary ore feed from Sayona Québec's (SYQ) wholly owned Authier Lithium Project, located just 30 km from the NAL site.

Initially, NAL will produce a lithium concentrate for general market conversion, however NAL will become a primary feed source for SYQ's integrated downstream refined lithium products. Key outcomes of the PFS include an estimated pretax NPV of CAD 952 million (AUD 1.05 billion as at 23 May 2022) (8% discount rate), a pretax IRR of 140% and capital payback period within two years. The life of mine has been extended to 27 years, based on an estimated JORC Proved and Probable Ore Reserves of 29.2 Mt @ 0.96% Li2O (Proved Reserve 1.2Mt @ 0.92% Li2O and Probable Reserve 28.0Mt @ 0.96% Li2O).

The above includes conservative allowances for non (or low) mineralised diluted material from the upper and lower contact of the pegmatite /mining horizon. Sayona will implement a ROM (runofmine) ore stockpile management system whereby diluted material, lower grade ore and highergrade feed will be segregated and managed via a stockpile management plan to ensure consistent feed to the plant. This will allow for production campaigns of similar material, providing the concentrate plant sufficient feed stock to maximise product recovery and grade.

The PFS has assessed strategic options for development, determined an economic open pit mine operation, production schedule and site layout for the preferred option. All works completed to date form the basis for progressing to a Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS), with a further refined overall accuracy of +/15%. Sayona plans to further tighten the overall accuracy via completion of the DFS, expected later in 2022.

The JORC Code 2012 Edition prescribes that a PreFeasibility Study (PFS) is a lower level of confidence than a Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS), however would normally contain mining, infrastructure and process designs completed with sufficient rigour to serve as the basis for an investment decision or to support progression of project financing. The PFS has been completed by independent consultants BBA to an accuracy of +/30%, with contributions from a number of leading industry service providers. The Ore Reserve Estimate has been estimated by Ms Mélissa Jarry, P.Eng.