Lion One to install evaporator system at Tuvatu

Executive Summary

• Lion One Metals Ltd. has approved a $1.14-million (U.S.) capital investment for the procurement and installation of an evaporator system at its 100%-owned Tuvatu gold project in Fiji.
• The system is designed to permanently manage excess process water in the tailings storage facility (TSF), eliminating the need for discharging water into the Sabeto River and thereby removing associated regulatory and environmental risks.
• The evaporator is expected to be fully operational by late April to early May 2026, coinciding with the start of Fiji's dry season, with a timeline of approximately six weeks from order placement to operation.

Key Details

• Investment Amount: $1.14 million (U.S.) total capital investment.
• Optional Costs: The investment includes $190,000 (U.S.) allocated for an optional acoustic silencer to enable 24-hour operations if required.
• Operational Timeline:
  • System can be operational within approximately six weeks of order placement.
  • Target full operational status: Late April to early May 2026.
• Strategic Rationale & Advantages:
  • Permanent Elimination of Discharge: Removes the need to discharge process water into the Sabeto River, providing a robust environmental outcome and removing continuing regulatory risk.
  • Reduced Timeline Risk: Significantly faster than alternative solutions (such as Reverse Osmosis) which face regulatory and procurement delays with no defined resolution timeline.
  • Cost-Effectiveness: Industry experience indicates a Reverse Osmosis (RO) plant alternative would cost a comparable amount for a single dry season rental alone.
  • Regulatory Certainty: Bypasses uncertainty surrounding river discharge permits, which are subject to an independent environmental impact assessment that has been uninitiated for over six months.
• Technical Context:
  • The current water treatment plant reduces copper to acceptable levels but cannot reduce total dissolved solids (TDS) below thresholds required for river discharge.
  • During significant rainfall, excess treated water is pumped to the TSF for storage.
  • There is currently no engineered mechanism other than natural evaporation to remove water from the TSF.
  • The new system includes a dedicated generator set and ancillary equipment, representing permanent infrastructure improvement.
• Environmental & ESG Benefits:
  • Creates a self-contained, closed-loop water management system preventing process water entry into the Sabeto River.
  • Replaces temporary/rental-based solutions with permanent infrastructure, reducing long-term operating costs.
  • Strengthens social license to operate by addressing water management as a permanent, engineered solution.

Notable Quotes

• "This investment permanently resolves our water management requirements while delivering an excellent environmental outcome. The evaporator is a far more economical and timely solution than the alternatives and, importantly, it removes regulatory risk entirely. We inherited a situation that required decisive action and this is exactly that," stated Campbell Olsen, chief executive officer.