LITHIUM AMERICAS CORP. [LAC] Filings

20-F 1 lac-20231231.htm 20-F 20-F

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, DC 20549

FORM 20-F

(Mark One)


☐	REGISTRATION STATEMENT PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(b) OR 12(g) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934


☒	ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023


☐	TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934


☐	SHELL COMPANY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

Date of event requiring this shell company report: Not applicable

For the transition period from _______ to _______

Commission file number: 001-41788

LITHIUM AMERICAS CORP.

(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

Not Applicable

(Translation of Registrant's name into English)

British Columbia, Canada

(Jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)

400 - 900 West Hastings Street, Vancouver, British Columbia, V6C 1E5

(Address of principal executive offices)

Edward Grandy

400 - 900 West Hastings Street, Vancouver, British Columbia, V6C 1E5
Telephone: (778) 656-5820

(Name, Telephone, E-mail and/or Facsimile number and Address of Company Contact Person)

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:


Title of class	Trading Symbol(s)	Name of exchange on which registered
Common Shares without par value	tLAC	Toronto Stock Exchange New York Stock Exchange

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None

Securities for which there is a reporting obligation pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Act: None

Indicate the number of outstanding shares of each of the issuer's classes of capital or common stock as of the close of the period covered by the annual report: 161,778,274 Common Shares of the Registrant were issued and outstanding

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. ☐ Yes ☒ No

If this report is an annual or transition report, indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. ☐ Yes ☒ No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. ☒ Yes ☐ No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). ☒ Yes ☐ No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of "large accelerated filer,""accelerated filer" and "emerging growth company" in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.


Large accelerated filer ☐	Accelerated filer ☐	Non-accelerated filer ☒
		Emerging growth company ☒

If an emerging growth company that prepares its financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards† provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

† The term "new or revised financial accounting standard" refers to any update issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board to its Accounting Standards Codification after April 5, 2012.

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management's assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☐

If securities are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act, indicate by check mark whether the financial statements of the registrant included in the filing reflect the correction of an error to previously issued financial statements. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether any of those error corrections are restatements that required a recovery analysis of incentive based compensation received by any of the registrant's executive officers during the relevant recovery period pursuant to §240.10D-1(b). ☐

Indicate by check mark which basis of accounting the registrant has used to prepare the financial statements included in this filing:

U.S. GAAP ☐ International Financial Reporting Standards as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board ☒ Other ☐

If "Other" has been checked in response to the previous question, indicate by check mark which financial statement item the registrant has elected to follow. ☐ Item 17 ☐ Item 18

If this is an annual report, indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). ☐ Yes ☒ No

TABLE OF CONTENTS


		Page
	CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS	1
	EXPLANATORY NOTE	3
	IMPLICATIONS OF BEING AN EMERGING GROWTH COMPANY	4
PART I		5
ITEM 1.	IDENTITY OF DIRECTORS, SENIOR MANAGEMENT AND ADVISERS	5
ITEM 2.	OFFER STATISTICS AND EXPECTED TIMETABLE	5
ITEM 3.	KEY INFORMATION	5
ITEM 4.	INFORMATION ON THE COMPANY	21
ITEM 4A.	UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS	52
ITEM 5.	OPERATING AND FINANCIAL REVIEW AND PROSPECTS	53
ITEM 6.	DIRECTORS, SENIOR MANAGEMENT AND EMPLOYEES	54
ITEM 7.	MAJOR SHAREHOLDERS AND RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS	73
ITEM 8.	FINANCIAL INFORMATION	74
ITEM 9.	THE OFFER AND LISTING	74
ITEM 10.	ADDITIONAL INFORMATION	74
ITEM 11.	QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK	90
ITEM 12.	DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES OTHER THAN EQUITY SECURITIES	90

PART II
ITEM 13.	DEFAULTS, DIVIDEND ARREARAGES AND DELINQUENCIES	91
ITEM 14.	MATERIAL MODIFICATIONS TO THE RIGHTS OF SECURITY HOLDERS AND USE OF PROCEEDS	91
ITEM 15.	CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES	91
ITEM 16.	[RESERVED]	91
ITEM 16A.	AUDIT COMMITTEE FINANCIAL EXPERT	92
ITEM 16B.	CODE OF ETHICS	92
ITEM 16C.	PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES	92
ITEM 16D.	EXEMPTIONS FROM THE LISTING STANDARDS FOR AUDIT COMMITTEES	93
ITEM 16E.	PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES BY THE ISSUER AND AFFILIATED PURCHASERS	93
ITEM 16F.	CHANGE IN REGISTRANT'S CERTIFYING ACCOUNTANT	93
ITEM 16G.	CORPORATE GOVERNANCE	93
ITEM 16H.	MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURE	94
ITEM 16I.	DISCLOSURE REGARDING FOREIGN JURISDICTIONS THAT PREVENT INSPECTIONS	94
ITEM 16J.	INSIDER TRADING POLICIES	94
ITEM 16K.	CYBERSECURITY	94

PART III
ITEM 17.	FINANCIAL STATEMENTS	96
ITEM 18.	FINANCIAL STATEMENTS	96
ITEM 19.	EXHIBITS	96

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This annual report on Form 20-F contains certain “forward-looking information” within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation, and “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of applicable United States securities legislation (collectively referred to as “forward-looking information” (“FLI”)). All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are FLI and can be identified by the use of statements that include, but are not limited to, words, such as “anticipate,” “plan,” “continues,” “estimate,” “expect,” “may,” “will,” “projects,” “predict,” “proposes,” “potential,” “target,” “implement,” “scheduled,” “forecast,” “intend,” “would,” “could,” “might,” “should,” “believe” and similar terminology, or statements that certain actions, events or results “may,” “could,” “would,” “might” or “will” be taken, occur or be achieved. FLI in this annual report includes, but is not limited to: the expected operations, financial results and condition of the Company (as defined below); the Company’s future objectives and strategies to achieve those objectives, including the future prospects of the Company; the estimated cash flow, capitalization and adequacy thereof for the Company; the estimated costs of the development of Thacker Pass (as defined below), including timing, progress, approach, continuity or change in plans, construction, commissioning, milestones, anticipated production and results thereof and expansion plans; expectations regarding accessing funding from the DOE Loan (as defined below); anticipated timing to resolve, and the expected outcome of, any complaints or claims made or that could be made concerning the permitting process in the United States for Thacker Pass; capital expenditures and programs; estimates, and any change in estimates, of the mineral resources and mineral reserves at Thacker Pass; development of mineral resources and mineral reserves; the expected benefits of the Arrangement (as defined below) to, and resulting treatment of, shareholders and the Company; the anticipated effects of the Arrangement; information concerning the tax treatment of the Arrangement; government regulation of mining operations and treatment under governmental and taxation regimes; the future price of commodities, including lithium; the creation of a battery supply chain in the United States to support the electric vehicle market; the realization of mineral resources and mineral reserves estimates, including whether certain mineral resources will ever be developed into mineral reserves, and information and underlying assumptions related thereto; the timing and amount of future production; currency exchange and interest rates; the Company’s ability to raise capital; expected expenditures to be made by the Company on Thacker Pass; ability to produce high purity battery grade lithium products; settlement of agreements related to the operation and sale of mineral production as well as contracts in respect of operations and inputs required in the course of production; the timing, cost, quantity, capacity and product quality of production at Thacker Pass; successful development of Thacker Pass, including successful results from the Company’s testing facility and third-party tests related thereto; capital costs, operating costs, sustaining capital requirements, after tax net present value and internal rate of return, payback period, sensitivity analyses, and net cash flows of Thacker Pass; the expected capital expenditures for the construction of Thacker Pass; anticipated job creation and workforce hub at Thacker Pass; the expectation that the PLA (as defined below) will minimize construction risk, ensure availability of skilled labor, address the challenges associated with Thacker Pass’ remote location and be effective in prioritizing employment of local and regional skilled craft workers, including members of underrepresented communities; the Company’s commitment to sustainable development, minimizing the environmental impact at Thacker Pass and plans for phased reclamation during the life of mine; ability to achieve capital cost efficiencies; the Tranche 2 Investment (as defined below) and the potential for additional financing scenarios for Thacker Pass; the expected timetable for completing the Tranche 2 Investment; the ability of the Company to complete the Tranche 2 Investment on the terms and timeline anticipated, or at all; the receipt of required stock exchange and regulatory approvals and authorizations, and the securing of sufficient available funding to complete the development of Phase 1 of Thacker Pass as required for the Tranche 2 Investment; the expected benefits of the Tranche 2 Investment; as well as other statements with respect to management’s beliefs, plans, estimates and intentions, and similar statements concerning anticipated future events, results, circumstances, performance or expectations that are not historical facts.

FLI involves known and unknown risks, assumptions and other factors that may cause actual results or performance to differ materially. FLI reflects the Company’s current views about future events, and while considered reasonable by the Company as of the date of this annual report, are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies. Accordingly, there can be no certainty that they will accurately reflect actual results. Assumptions upon which such FLI is based include, without limitation: the potential benefits of the Arrangement being realized; the risk of tax liabilities as a result of the Arrangement, and general business and economic uncertainties and adverse market conditions; the risk that the Arrangement may not be tax-free for income tax purposes and potential significant tax liabilities that the Company may be exposed to if the tax-deferred spinoff rules are not met; the risk of tax indemnity obligations owed by the Company to Lithium Argentina (as defined below) following the Arrangement becoming payable, including as a result of events outside of the Company’s control; uncertainties inherent to feasibility studies and mineral resource and mineral reserve estimates; the ability of the Company to secure sufficient additional financing, advance and develop Thacker Pass, and to produce battery grade lithium; the respective benefits and impacts of Thacker Pass when production operations commence; settlement of agreements related to the operation and sale of mineral production as well as contracts in respect of operations and inputs required in the course of production; the Company’s ability to operate in a safe and effective manner, and without material adverse impact from the effects of climate change or severe weather conditions; uncertainties relating to receiving and

maintaining mining, exploration, environmental and other permits or approvals in Nevada; demand for lithium, including that such demand is supported by growth in the electric vehicle market; current technological trends; the impact of increasing competition in the lithium business, and the Company’s competitive position in the industry; continuing support of local communities and the Fort McDermitt Paiute Shoshone Tribe for Thacker Pass; continuing constructive engagement with these and other stakeholders, and any expected benefits of such engagement; the stable and supportive legislative, regulatory and community environment in the jurisdictions where the Company operates; impacts of inflation, currency exchanges rates, interest rates and other general economic and stock market conditions; the impact of unknown financial contingencies, including litigation costs, environmental compliance costs and costs associated with the impacts of climate change, on the Company’s operations; increased attention to environmental, social, governance and safety (“ESG-S”) and sustainability-related matters, risks related to the Company’s public statements with respect to such matters that may be subject to heightened scrutiny from public and governmental authorities related to the risk of potential “greenwashing,"(i.e., misleading information or false claims overstating potential sustainability-related benefits); risks that the Company may face regarding potentially conflicting anti-ESG-S initiatives from certain U.S. state or other governments; estimates of and unpredictable changes to the market prices for lithium products; development and construction costs for Thacker Pass, and costs for any additional exploration work at the project; estimates of mineral resources and mineral reserves, including whether mineral resources not included in mineral reserves will be further developed into mineral reserves; reliability of technical data; anticipated timing and results of exploration, development and construction activities, including the impact of ongoing supply chain disruptions and availability of equipment and supplies on such timing; timely responses from governmental agencies responsible for reviewing and considering the Company’s permitting activities at Thacker Pass; availability of technology, including low carbon energy sources and water rights, on acceptable terms to advance Thacker Pass; the Company’s ability to obtain additional financing on satisfactory terms or at all, including the outcome of the DOE Loan application; government regulation of mining operations and mergers and acquisitions activity, and treatment under governmental, regulatory and taxation regimes; ability to realize expected benefits from investments in or partnerships with third parties; accuracy of development budgets and construction estimates; that the Company will meet its future objectives and priorities; that the Company will have access to adequate capital to fund its future projects and plans; that such future projects and plans will proceed as anticipated; the ability of the Company to satisfy all closing conditions for the Tranche 2 Investment and complete the Tranche 2 Investment in a timely manner; the impact of the Tranche 2 Investment on dilution of shareholders and on the trading prices for, and market for trading in, the securities of the Company; as well as assumptions concerning general economic and industry growth rates, commodity prices, currency exchange and interests rates and competitive conditions. Although the Company believes that the assumptions and expectations reflected in such FLI are reasonable, the Company can give no assurance that these assumptions and expectations will prove to be correct.

There can be no assurance that FLI will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. As such, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on this information, and that this information may not be appropriate for any other purpose, including investment purposes. The Company’s actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in any FLI as a result of the risk factors set out herein, and in the Company’s other continuous disclosure documents available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca and EDGAR at www.sec.gov. All FLI contained in this annual report is expressly qualified by the risk factors set out in the aforementioned documents. Readers are further cautioned to review the full description of risks, uncertainties and management’s assumptions in the aforementioned documents and other disclosure documents available on SEDAR+ and on EDGAR.

The Company expressly disclaims any obligation to update FLI as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as and to the extent required by applicable securities laws. Forward-looking financial information also constitutes FLI within the context of applicable securities laws and as such, is subject to the same risks, uncertainties and assumptions as are set out in the cautionary note above.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

On January 23, 2023, Lithium Americas Corp. (formerly, 1397468 B.C. Ltd.) (the “Company”) was incorporated under the Business Corporations Act (British Columbia) (the "BCBCA") for the sole purpose of acquiring ownership of the North American business assets and investments (“LAC North America”) of Lithium Americas Corp. (“Old LAC”), which is now named Lithium Americas (Argentina) Corp. (“Lithium Argentina”) pursuant to a separation transaction (the “Separation”) that was undertaken on October 3, 2023. Upon consummation of the Separation, the Company was re-named Lithium Americas Corp., and its common shares (the “Common Shares”) were listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (“TSX”) and on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) under the symbol “LAC.”

The Separation was implemented by way of a plan of arrangement (the “Arrangement”) under the laws of British Columbia pursuant to an arrangement agreement between the Company and Old LAC. Upon completion of the Separation, Old LAC contributed to the Company, among other assets and liabilities, its interest in the Thacker Pass project (“Thacker Pass”), its investments in Green Technology Metals Limited and Ascend Elements, Inc. ("Ascend Elements"), certain intellectual property rights, its loan to 1339480 B.C. Ltd., and cash of $275.5 million, including $75 million to establish sufficient working capital. The Company then distributed its Common Shares to shareholders of Old LAC in a series of share exchanges. The Separation was pro rata to the shareholders of Old LAC, so that the holders maintained the same proportionate interest in Old LAC and the Company both immediately before and immediately after the Separation.

IMPLICATIONS OF BEING AN EMERGING GROWTH COMPANY

The Company qualifies as an "emerging growth company" as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), as modified by the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012, or the "JOBS Act." As an emerging growth company, the Company may take advantage of specified reduced disclosure and other exemptions from requirements that are otherwise applicable to public companies that are not emerging growth companies. These provisions include:

•

reduced disclosure about the Company's executive compensation arrangements;

•

exemptions from non-binding shareholder advisory votes on executive compensation or golden parachute arrangements; and

•

exemption from the auditor attestation requirement in the assessment of our internal control over financial reporting.

The Company does not intend to take advantage of the extended transition period allowed for emerging growth companies for complying with new or revised accounting guidance as allowed by Section 107 of the JOBS Act and Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act.

The Company may take advantage of these exemptions for up to five years after the date of first sale of securities under a Securities Act registration statement or such earlier time that the Company is no longer an emerging growth company. The Company would cease to be an emerging growth company if it has more than $1.235 billion in annual revenues as of the end of a fiscal year, if it is deemed to be a large-accelerated filer under the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") or if it issues more than $1.0 billion of non-convertible debt over a three-year period.

PART I

Unless the context otherwise requires, as used in this annual report, the terms "Company,""we,""us,"and "our" refer to Lithium Americas Corp. and any or all of its subsidiaries, and "Lithium Americas Corp." refers only to Lithium Americas Corp. and not to its subsidiaries. References in this annual report to "LAC" refer to Lithium Americas Corp.

Unless otherwise indicated, all references to "U.S. dollars,""dollars,""US$" and "$" in this annual report are to the lawful currency of the United States of America.

ITEM 1. IDENTITY OF DIRECTORS, SENIOR MANAGEMENT AND ADVISERS

Not applicable.

ITEM 2. OFFER STATISTICS AND EXPECTED TIMETABLE

Not applicable.

ITEM 3. KEY INFORMATION

A. [Reserved]

B. Capitalization and Indebtedness

Not applicable.

C. Reasons for the Offer and Use of Proceeds

Not applicable.

D. Risk Factors

An investment in the Company’s securities should be considered as highly speculative given the current stage of the Company’s business and development. Such an investment is subject to a number of risks at any given time. Below is a description of the principal risk factors affecting the Company. The risk factors set out below are not exhaustive and do not include risks the Company deems to be immaterial; however, even an immaterial risk has the potential to have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, financial condition, operating results, or future prospects. Investors should carefully consider these risk factors, many of which are beyond the Company’s control, together with all other information included in this Form 20-F, in evaluating the Company and its Common Shares. The following risk factors could adversely affect the Company's business, financial condition, results of operations and the price of the Common Shares.

The following are risk factors that the Company’s management believes are most important in the context of the Company’s business. It should be noted that this list is not exhaustive and that other risk factors may apply. Additional risks are disclosed in the Company’s other continuous disclosure documents which are available on the Company’s SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca. or through EDGAR at the website of the SEC at www.sec.gov.

Risks Relating to the Company

Risks Related to Resource Development

Thacker Pass Project Development Risk

The Company's business strategy depends in substantial part on developing Thacker Pass into a commercially viable mine and chemical manufacturing facility. Whether a mineral deposit will be commercially viable depends on numerous factors, including but not limited to: the attributes of the deposit, such as size and grade; proximity to available infrastructure; economics for new infrastructure; market conditions for battery-grade lithium products; processing methods and costs; and government permitting and regulations.

On February 6, 2023, the Company received a favorable ruling from the U.S. District Court in respect of the appeal of the issuance of the Record of Decision (the "ROD") for Thacker Pass. The U.S. District Court declined to vacate the ROD for Thacker Pass. Addressing one remand issue from the court, the U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Land

Management (the "BLM") subsequently considered whether the Company possesses adequate mining-claim rights to the lands over the area designated for waste storage and tailings and did not impose any restrictions expected to impact the construction timeline of Thacker Pass. The Company commenced construction activities, including site preparation, geotechnical drilling, water well drilling, water pipeline development and associated infrastructure after having selected an engineering, procurement and construction management firm to develop and execute the construction plan for Thacker Pass. The Company is also focused on the development of a North American supply chain and continues to progress the U.S. Department of Energy (“DOE”) Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Loan Program (“DOE Loan”) application for which a Conditional Commitment was received from the DOE on March 12, 2024.

There are many additional factors that could impact the development of Thacker Pass, including terms and availability of financing, cost overruns, litigation or administrative appeals concerning the project, delays in development, and any permitting changes, among other factors. Thacker Pass is also subject to the development and operational risks described elsewhere in this annual report. Accordingly, there can be no assurance that the Company will complete development of Thacker Pass as currently contemplated, or at all. If the Company is unable to develop Thacker Pass into a commercial operating mine, its business and financial condition could be materially adversely affected.

Risks Relating to the U.S. DOE ATVM Loan Program

The Company’s receipt on March 12, 2024, of a Conditional Commitment from the DOE for the DOE Loan is not an assurance that definitive financing documents will be negotiated and completed, that the terms and conditions of the DOE Loan will be consistent with the terms proposed by the Company or that all technical, legal and financial conditions will be achieved. The outcome of the Company's application to the DOE for funding to be used at Thacker Pass through the DOE Loan is dependent on whether the DOE decides to proceed with the definitive financing documents, and there can be no assurances as to the outcome of this decision and the terms and conditions of the financing documents that may be offered, if any.

Product Price Risk

The ability to generate profitable operations on Thacker Pass, if and to the extent the project is developed and enters commercial operation, will be significantly affected by the market price of lithium-based end products, such as lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide. The market price of these products fluctuates widely and is affected by numerous factors beyond the Company's control, including world supply and demand, pricing characteristics for alternate energy sources such as oil and gas, government policy and laws, interest rates, the rate of inflation and the stability of currency exchange rates. Such external economic factors are influenced by changes in international investment patterns, various political developments and macro-economic circumstances. Furthermore, the price of lithium products is significantly affected by their purity and performance, and by the specifications of end-user battery manufacturers. If the products produced from the Company's projects do not meet battery-grade quality and/or do not meet customer specifications, pricing will be reduced from that expected for battery-grade products. In turn, the availability of customers may also decrease. The Company may not be able to effectively mitigate against pricing risks for its products. Depressed pricing for the Company's products will affect the level of revenues expected to be generated by the Company, which in turn could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.

Production Estimates

This annual report and the feasibility study re-issued by the Company titled “Feasibility Study: National Instrument 43-101 Technical Report for the Thacker Pass Project, Humboldt County, Nevada, USA” dated effective November 2, 2022 (the “Nov 2022 Feasibility Study”) and the preliminary feasibility study titled “Preliminary Feasibility Study S-K 1300 Technical Report Summary for the Thacker Pass Project Humboldt County, Nevada, USA” with an effective date of December 31, 2022 (the “Thacker Pass 1300 Report” and collectively with the Nov 2022 Feasibility Study, the “Reports”) contain estimates relating to future production and future production costs for Thacker Pass. No assurance can be given that production estimates will be achieved generally or at the stated costs. These production estimates are dependent on, among other things, the accuracy of mineral reserve estimates, the accuracy of assumptions regarding ore grades and recovery rates, ground conditions, physical conditions of ores, assumed metallurgical characteristics and the accuracy of estimated rates and costs of mining and processing. For Thacker Pass, ore grades or types may be lower quality than expected, which may result in levels lower than expected. The failure of the Company to achieve production estimates could have a material and adverse effect on any or all of its cash flows, profitability, results of operations and financial condition.

Capital and Operating Cost Estimates

The expected capital and operating costs for Thacker Pass are based on the interpretation of geological and metallurgical data, feasibility studies, economic factors, anticipated climatic conditions and other factors that may prove to be inaccurate. Therefore, the Reports may prove to be unreliable if the assumptions or estimates do not reflect actual facts and events. The Thacker Pass 1300 Report estimated life of mine project capital costs for Thacker Pass of $5.51 billion for both Phase 1 and 2, but any of the following events, among the other events and uncertainties described therein, could affect the ultimate accuracy of such estimates: uncertainties in the interpreted geological data based on wide-spaced drill holes not being representative of the mineral deposit locally, in particular, unrecognized faults or basaltic units that could require changes to the mine plan or increased mine dilution or mine losses; unrecognized geotechnical conditions that could require flattening of the pit slope increasing the strip ratio and mining costs, and area required for waste rock storage; unanticipated changes to the process flowsheet; increase in capital costs for any reason; and adverse weather conditions that could reduce mine equipment performance and require waste management storage areas to be redesigned.

Permitting Risks

Although the Company has obtained all key environmental permits for Thacker Pass for an initial stage of construction, there can be no certainty that current permits will be maintained, permitting changes such as changes to the mine plan or increases to planned capacity will be approved, or additional local, state or provincial permits or approvals required to carry out development and production at Thacker Pass will be obtained, projected timelines for permitting decisions to be made will be met, or the projected costs of permitting will be accurate.

In addition, there is the risk that existing permits will be subject to challenges of regulatory administrative process, and similar litigation and appeal processes. Litigation and regulatory review processes can result in lengthy delays, with uncertain outcomes. Such issues could impact the expected development timelines of Thacker Pass and consequently have a material adverse effect on the Company's prospects and business.

Natural Resource Risk

The processes contemplated by the Company for production of lithium carbonate from a sedimentary deposit such as that of Thacker Pass have not previously been demonstrated at commercial scale. To mitigate this risk, the Company developed the Lithium Technical Development Center in Reno, Nevada ("LiTDC"), a new integrated process testing facility in Reno, Nevada to test the process chemistry. The LiTDC continues to operate based on the Thacker Pass flowsheet processing raw ore to final battery-quality lithium carbonate to produce product samples for potential customers and partners. The results of ongoing test work to de-risk each step of the flowsheet continue to be in line with expectations. However, there are risks that the process chemistry will not be demonstrated at scale, efficiencies of recovery and throughput capacity will not be met, or that scaled production will not be cost effective or operate as expected. In addition, the novel nature of the deposit could result in unforeseen costs, additional changes to the process chemistry and engineering, and other unforeseen circumstances that could result in additional delays to develop the project or increased capital or operating costs from those estimated in the Reports, which could have a material adverse effect on the development of Thacker Pass.

Geopolitical Factors and Activist Political Involvement

The Company's business is international in scope, with its incorporating jurisdiction and head office located in Canada and Thacker Pass located in the United States. Changes, if any, in mining, investment or other applicable policies or shifts in political attitude in any of the jurisdictions in which the Company operates, or towards such political jurisdictions, may adversely affect the Company's operations or profitability and may affect the Company's ability to fund its ongoing expenditures at its projects.

More specifically, as a result of increased concerns around global supply chains, the lithium industry has become subject to increasing political involvement, including in the United States and Canada. This reflects the critical role of lithium as an input in the development of batteries for the burgeoning transition to electric vehicles in the automotive industry, combined with worldwide supply constraints for lithium production and geopolitical tensions between Western countries such as the United States and Canada on the one hand and China on the other, arising from the dominant role of China in the production of inputs for the battery industry. The resulting political involvement appears to be evolving into a form of industrial policy by several governments, including those of Canada and the United States, in which they employ steps to encourage the development of domestic supply such as tax incentives and low-interest loans to domestic and other Western actors, as well as undertake steps to discourage the involvement of participants from non-Western countries, including the expansion of legal oversight and an expansion of the scope of discretionary authority under laws and regulations to impose restrictions on ownership, influence and investment. These factors are of particular relevance to the Company, with its Canadian

incorporation, U.S.-based Thacker Pass and predominant connection to Canada and the United States through its stock exchange listings, shareholder base and board and management composition. This evolving industrial policy is resulting in benefits to the Company as a result of its connection to Canada and the United States, including the prospect of tax incentives and, potentially, financial support being made available for the development of Thacker Pass. The Company is also having to manage the more restrictive aspects of this increased government involvement, which is expected to result in limitations on the extent to which the Company will be able to undertake business operations with non-Western parties and limitations on ownership and influence of non-Western parties in its business. The Company has and intends to continue to fully comply with legislation and policies in all jurisdictions where it operates. At this time, the Company does not believe that any of these steps will result in a substantive adverse change to its business or operations, or the intended geographic focus of its business.

The Company wholly-owns a mineral property in the United States. Changes, if any, in mining, investment or other applicable policies or shifts in political attitude in any of the jurisdictions in which the Company operates may adversely affect the Company's operations or profitability and may affect the Company's ability to fund its ongoing expenditures at its projects. Regardless of the economic viability of the properties in which the Company holds interests, and despite being beyond the Company's control, such political changes could have a substantive impact on the Company that may prevent or restrict mining of some or all of any deposits on the Company's properties, including the financial results therefrom.

Lithium Market Growth Uncertainty

The development of lithium operations at Thacker Pass is highly dependent upon the currently projected demand for and uses of lithium-based end products. This includes lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles and other large format batteries that currently have limited market share and whose projected adoption rates are not assured. To the extent that such markets do not develop in the manner contemplated by the Company, then the long-term growth in the market for lithium products will be adversely affected, which would inhibit the potential for development of Thacker Pass, its potential commercial viability and would otherwise have a negative effect on the business and financial condition of the Company. In addition, as a commodity, lithium market demand is subject to the substitution effect in which end-users adopt an alternate commodity as a response to supply constraints or increases in market pricing. To the extent that these factors arise in the market for lithium, it could have a negative impact on overall prospects for growth of the lithium market and pricing, which in turn could have a negative effect on the Company and its projects.

No History of Mining Operations

The Company has no prior history of completing the development of a mining project or conducting mining operations. The future development of properties found to be economically feasible will require the construction and operation of mines, processing plants and related infrastructure. While certain members of management and employees have mining development, chemical industry and operational experience, the Company does not have vast experience as a collective organization. As a result of these factors, it is difficult to evaluate the Company's prospects, and the Company's future success is more uncertain than if it had a proven history.

Risks of New Development and Mining Operations

The Company is and will continue to be subject to all risks inherent with establishing new mining operations including: the time and costs of construction of mining and processing facilities and related infrastructure; the availability and costs of skilled labor and mining equipment and supplies; the need to obtain and maintain necessary environmental and other governmental approvals, licenses and permits, and the timing of the receipt of those approvals, licenses and permits; the availability of funds to finance construction and development activities; potential opposition from non-governmental organizations, indigenous peoples, environmental groups or local groups which may delay or prevent development activities; and potential increases in construction and operating costs due to various factors, including changes in the costs of fuel, power, labour, contractors, materials, supplies and equipment.

It is common in new mining operations to experience unexpected costs, problems and delays during construction, commissioning and mine start-up. In addition, delays in the early stages of mineral production often occur. Accordingly, the Company cannot provide assurance that its activities will result in profitable mining operations at Thacker Pass and any other mineral properties the Company advances or acquires in the future.

Risks of Cost Estimations

Feasibility reports and other mining studies, including the Reports, are inherently subject to uncertainties. Capital costs, operating costs, production and economic returns, and other estimates may differ significantly from those anticipated by the Company's current estimates, and there can be no assurance that the Company's actual capital, operating and other costs will not be higher than currently anticipated. The Company's actual costs and production may vary from estimates for a variety of reasons, including, but not limited to: lack of availability of resources or necessary supplies or equipment; inflationary pressures flowing from global supply chain shortages and increased transportation costs and other international events, which in turn are causing increased costs for supplies and equipment; increasing labor and personnel costs; unexpected construction or operating problems; cost overruns; lower than expected realized lithium prices; lower than expected ore grades; revisions to construction plans; risks and hazards associated with construction, mineral production and chemical plant operations; natural phenomena such as floods, fires, droughts or water shortages; unexpected labour shortages or strikes; general inflationary pressures and interest and currency exchange rates. Many of these factors are beyond the Company's control and could have a material effect on the Company's business, financial condition, results of operations, and operating cash flow, including the Company's ability to service its indebtedness.

Negative Cash Flows from Operations

The Company anticipates it will continue to have negative cash flow from operating activities in future periods until profitable commercial production is achieved at Thacker Pass. The Company’s ability to continue as a going concern will be dependent upon its ability to generate profits from its proposed operations, or to raise capital through equity or debt financing to continue to meet its obligations and repay its liabilities arising from normal business operations when they come due.

Operating Risks

The Company's operations are subject to all of the hazards and risks normally incidental to the exploration for, and the development and operation of, mineral properties and associated chemical plants, including an onsite sulfuric acid plant. The Company has implemented a comprehensive suite of health and safety measures designed to comply with government regulations and protect the health and safety of the Company's workforce in all areas of its business. The Company also strives to comply with environmental regulations in its operations. Nonetheless, mineral exploration, development and exploitation involves a high degree of risk, which even a combination of experience, knowledge and careful evaluation may not be able to overcome. Unusual or unexpected formations, formation pressures, fires, power outages, shutdowns due to equipment breakdown or failure, aging of equipment or facilities, unexpected maintenance and replacement expenditures, unexpected material handling problems, unexpected equipment capacity constraints, human error, labour disruptions or disputes, inclement weather, higher than forecast precipitation, flooding, shortages of water, explosions, releases of hazardous materials, deleterious elements materializing in mined resources, cave-ins, slope and embankment failures, landslides, earthquakes and industrial accidents, protests and other security issues, and the inability to obtain adequate machinery, equipment or labor due to shortages, strikes or public health issues such as pandemics, are some of the risks involved in mineral exploration and exploitation activities, which may, if as either a significant occurrence or a sustained occurrence over a significant period of time, result in a material adverse effect. The Company expects to rely on third-party owned infrastructure in order to successfully develop and operate its projects, such as power, utility and transportation infrastructure. Any failure of this infrastructure, or problems with the achieving agreements that facilitate use of this infrastructure (if any are required), without adequate replacement or alternatives may also have a material impact on the Company.

Ore grade, composition or type at Thacker Pass may be lower quality than expected, which may result in actual production levels being lower than expected.

The Thacker Pass project could be affected by seasonal factors affecting the business including but not limited to the availability of power resources and water supply, which could be influenced by seasonal variability due to stresses on those resources. The lithium chemicals business also is subject to commercial business cycles and commodities price cycles. If the global economy stalls and commodity prices decline, a continuing period of lower prices could significantly affect the economic potential of our properties and result in the Company's decision to cease work on or drop its interest in the property.

Risks from Changing Regulations and Laws

Changes to government laws and regulations may affect the development of Thacker Pass. Such changes could include laws relating to taxation, royalties, restrictions on production, export controls, environmental, biodiversity and ecological compliance, mine development and operations, mine safety, permitting and numerous other aspects of the Company’s business.

Environmental Risks and Regulations

The Company must comply with stringent environmental regulation in the United States. Such regulations relate to many aspects of the project operations for Thacker Pass, including but not limited to water usage and water quality, air quality and emissions, reclamation requirements, biodiversity such as impacts on flora and fauna, disposal of any hazardous substances and waste, tailings management and other environmental impacts associated with its development and proposed operating activities.

Environmental regulations are evolving in a manner that is expected to require stricter standards and enforcement, increased fines and penalties for non-compliance, more stringent environmental assessments of proposed projects and a heightened degree of responsibility for companies and their officers, directors and employees. Applicable environmental laws and regulations may require enhanced public disclosure and consultation. It is possible that a legal protest could be triggered through one of these requirements or processes that could delay development activities. Certain U.S. laws allow for third parties to petition regulators for designations that could have the potential of imposing additional mitigation or limitations at Thacker Pass or surrounding areas. The Company is aware of requests to list special status species and to designate traditional historic property in and around Thacker Pass. No assurance can be given that new environmental laws, regulations or actions will not be enacted or that existing environmental laws and regulations will not be applied in a manner that could limit or curtail the Company's development programs. Such changes in environmental laws and regulations and associated regulatory requirements could delay and/or increase the cost of exploration and development of Thacker Pass.

Tailings are a potential environmental risk for the Company as it moves toward production. Tailings are the materials remaining after a target mineral, such as lithium, is extracted from the ore. Tailings management is subject to regulatory requirements and industry best practice standards, as there are a number of environmental risks and water usage requirements associated with them. Given the location of Thacker Pass, which is in an arid, generally flat and less populated region of Nevada, and the design of the mine plans and processes to manage waste and water for Thacker Pass, many of the risks associated with tailings management are expected to be mitigated for the project. Tailings generated at Thacker Pass will be filtered and stacked, which generally has fewer risks and environmental impacts than other tailings management methods. Nonetheless, risks associated with tailings cannot be eliminated. Certain risks such as the potential failure of water diversion and water impoundment structures and a weather event exceeding the design criteria of water diversion and water impoundment structures will continue to exist. The occurrence of any of these events, some of which are heightened risks given the potential effects of climate change, could result in significant impacts to property and the environment. This in turn could restrict operations, result in additional remediation and compliance costs, trigger investigations by regulatory authorities, and have a material adverse effect on the Company's planned operations and financial condition.

The Company has completed previous mining for small amounts of clay on a portion of the lands comprising Thacker Pass in connection with its former organoclay business, which had an environmental impact on the property. Although the Company has performed reclamation work on the property to address such environmental impacts, and much of the disturbance is expected to be subsumed by Thacker Pass, there can be no assurance that additional environmental liability will not arise in the future.

Risks of Business Concentration

The Company has only one material mining project, Thacker Pass. Unless it acquires other mineral properties or makes new discoveries for certain areas where the Company owns the mineral rights, the Company will be dependent on Thacker Pass being successfully developed and brought into production. Failure to successfully develop, bring into production and operate Thacker Pass could have a material adverse impact on the Company's business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects. Until such time as the Company acquires or develops other significant assets, the Company will continue to be dependent on the success of its activities at Thacker Pass.

Insurance Risks

In the course of exploration, development and production of mineral properties, certain risks, and in particular, risks related to operational and environmental incidents may occur. Although the Company maintains insurance to protect against certain risks associated with its business, insurance may not be available to insure against all such risks, or the costs of such insurance may be uneconomic. The Company may also elect not to obtain insurance for other reasons. Insurance policies maintained by the Company may not be adequate to cover the full costs of actual liabilities incurred by the Company, or may not be continued by insurers for reasons not solely within the Company's control. The Company maintains liability insurance in accordance with industry standards and the anticipated costs of environmental reclamation are fully bonded

by the Company through a third-party insurer. Reclamation cost estimates and bond submissions are reviewed and approved by the BLM and the State of Nevada also approves the reclamation cost estimate. Nevertheless, losses from uninsured and underinsured liabilities have the potential to materially affect the Company's financial position, results of operations and prospects.

Mineral Tenure Risk

The U.S. Mining Act and other federal and state laws govern the Company's ability to develop, mine and process the minerals on the unpatented mining claims and/or mill site claims that form Thacker Pass, which are locatable under the U.S. Mining Act. There can be no assurance of title to any of the Company's property interests, or that such title will ultimately be secured. The Company's property interests may also be subject to prior unregistered agreements or transfers or other land claims, and title may be affected by undetected defects and adverse laws and regulations.

The Company cannot guarantee that the validity of its unpatented mining claims will not be contested. A successful contest of the unpatented mining claims could result in the Company being unable to develop minerals on the contested unpatented mining claims or being unable to exercise its rights as the owner or locater of the unpatented mining claims.

The Company must apply for and obtain approvals and permits from federal and state agencies to conduct exploration, development and mining on its properties. Although the Company has applied for and has received, or anticipates receipt of, such approvals and permits for certain areas where the Company owns mineral rights, there is no assurance that the Company's rights under them will not be affected by legislation or amendment of regulations governing the approvals and permits, or that applicable government agencies will not seek to revoke or significantly alter the conditions of the applicable exploration and mining approvals or permits, or that they will not be challenged or impugned by third parties.

Risks of Competitive Industry

The mining industry is competitive in all of its phases and requires significant capital, technical resources, personnel and operational experience to effectively compete. Because of the high costs associated with exploration, the expertise required to analyze a project's potential and the capital required to develop a mine, larger companies with significant resources may be in a position to compete for such resources and capital more effectively than the Company.

Competition is also intense for mining equipment, supplies, qualified service providers and personnel in all jurisdictions where the Company operates. If qualified expertise cannot be sourced and at cost effective rates in Canada and the United States, the Company may need to procure those services elsewhere, which could result in additional delays and higher costs to obtain work permits.

As a result of such competition, the Company may be unable to maintain or acquire financing, retain existing personnel or hire new personnel, or maintain or acquire technical or other resources, supplies or equipment, all on terms it considers acceptable to complete the development of its projects.

The Company also expects risks relating to market conditions including but not limited to potential variability in demand for lithium products and competition in the market by various producers. The strength of market demand for lithium product end-uses cannot be assured. Other developers and producers of lithium are currently active in the production and exploration of lithium resources and could impact the availability and pricing of lithium.

Health and Safety Risks

The mineral exploration, development and processing business carries an inherent risk of liability related to worker health and safety, including the risk of government-imposed orders to remedy unsafe conditions, potential penalties for contravention of health and safety laws, requirements for permits and other regulatory approvals, and potential civil liability. Compliance with health and safety laws, and any changes to such laws, and the requirements of applicable permits and other regulatory requirements remains material to the Company's business. The Company may become subject to government orders, investigations, inquiries or other proceedings (including civil claims) relating to health and safety matters. The occurrence of any of these events or any changes, additions to or more rigorous enforcement of health and safety laws, permits or other approvals could have a significant impact on operations and result in additional costs or penalties. In turn, these could have a material adverse effect on the Company's business, financial condition, results of operations and future prospects.

Mineral Resource and Mineral Reserve Estimation Risks

Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves figures disclosed in this annual report are estimates only. Estimated tonnages and grades may not be achieved if the projects are brought into production; differences in grades and tonnage could be material; and, estimated levels of recovery may not be realized. The estimation of Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves carries with it many inherent uncertainties, of which many are outside the control of the Company. Estimation is by its very nature a subjective process, which is based on the quality and quantity of available data, engineering assumptions, geological interpretation and judgments used in the engineering and estimation processes. Estimates may also need to be revised based on changes to underlying assumptions, such as commodity prices, drilling results, metallurgical testing, production, and changes to mine plans of operation. Any material decrease in estimates of Mineral Resources or Mineral Reserves, or an inability to extract Mineral Reserves could have a material adverse effect on the Company, its business, results of operations and financial position.

Any estimates of Inferred Mineral Resources included in this annual report are also subject to a high degree of uncertainty, and may require a significant amount of exploration work in order to determine if they can be upgraded to a higher category.

Project Opposition Risks

Thacker Pass, like many mining projects, may have opponents. Opponents of other mining projects have, in some cases, been successful in bringing public and political pressure against mining projects. Substantial opposition to the Company's mining project could result in delays to project development or business plans, or prevent the project from proceeding at all, despite the commercial viability of the project.

Climate Change Risks

Climate change may impact the sufficiency of water available to support planned Phase 1 operations for Thacker Pass, which may have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, financial position, results of operations and prospects. Water management regulations are in place in Nevada where Thacker Pass is located. Water rights have been acquired that are expected to be sufficient to support all Phase 1 operations for Thacker Pass as contemplated by the Reports. However, given the unpredictable impact of climate change on the environment, water levels, weather conditions and weather events, such as drought, in the region where Thacker Pass is located, there is a risk that the aquifers in the watersheds where the Company has acquired water rights to date may not be able to provide enough water for planned operations for the estimated mine life set out in the plan of operations. To reduce the environmental footprint of Thacker Pass, and as a mitigation measure, the processing facility at Thacker Pass has been designed to minimize water usage to the extent possible by incorporating recycling technologies. However, going forward, availability of water and water rights at cost effective pricing may become of increasing importance to the Company's operations and prospects, a risk that may be heightened by the potential effects of climate change and this could have a material adverse effect on the Company's operations and prospects.

The introduction of climate change legislation is an increasing focus of various levels of government worldwide, with emissions regulations and reporting regimes being enacted or enhanced, and energy efficiency requirements becoming increasingly stringent. As a development stage company with a focus on lithium production, the Company is committed to developing its business with a view to contributing to the low carbon economy. To that end, the Company is designing facilities to reduce carbon emissions at Thacker Pass. This includes incorporating sustainable energy sources and minimizing the use of non-renewable sources of energy to the extent that renewable sources are available with sufficient capacity, at cost effective pricing and that meet the required performance criteria. However, the use of such low carbon technologies may be more costly in certain instances than non-renewable options in the near-term, or may result in higher design costs, long-term maintenance costs or replacement costs. Additionally, if the trend toward increasing regulations continues, the Company may face increasing operating costs at its projects to comply with these changing regulations.

Climate change risks also extend to the physical risks of climate change. These include risks of variable and extreme precipitation, reduction in water availability or water shortages, extreme weather events, changing temperatures, wildfire, changing sea levels and shortages of resources. These physical risks of climate change could have a negative effect on the project site for Thacker Pass, access to local infrastructure and resources, and the health and safety of employees and contractors at the Company's operations. The occurrence of such events is difficult to predict and develop a response plan for that will effectively address all potential scenarios. Although the Company has attempted to design project facilities to address certain climate related risks, the potential exists for these measures to be insufficient in the face of unpredictable climate related events. As such, climate related events have the potential to have a material adverse effect on the Company's business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.

Risks related to increasing climate change related litigation is another potential risk factor that may impact the Company's business and prospects, after production begins at Thacker Pass.

Risks Related to “Passive Foreign Investment Company”

If the Company is classified as a "passive foreign investment company" ("PFIC") within the meaning of Section 1297 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Code") for U.S. federal income tax purposes, a U.S. shareholder who owns common shares could be subject to adverse tax consequences, including a greater tax liability than might otherwise apply, an interest charge on certain taxes deemed deferred as a result of the Company's non-U.S. status, and additional U.S. tax reporting obligations. In general, a non-U.S. corporation will be a PFIC during a taxable year if, taking into account the income and assets of certain of its affiliates, (i) 75% or more of its gross income constitutes passive income or (ii) 50% or more of its assets produce, or are held for the production of, passive income. Passive income generally includes interest, dividends, and other investment income.

The determination of whether the Company is a PFIC depends upon the composition of its income and assets and the nature of its activities from time to time and must be made annually as of the close of each taxable year. The PFIC determination also depends on the application of complex U.S. federal income tax rules that are subject to differing interpretations. Based on its current and expected income, assets and activities, the Company may be classified as a PFIC for the current taxable year or in the foreseeable future. Thus, there can be no assurance that the Company will not be classified as a PFIC for any taxable year, or that the United States Internal Revenue Service (the "IRS") or a court will agree with the Company's determination as to its PFIC status. In addition, in the event that the common shares that a U.S. shareholder received pursuant to the Arrangement is treated as stock of a PFIC, the U.S. federal income tax treatment is not entirely clear. A U.S. shareholder, however, can be treated as holding stock of a PFIC in periods prior to the Arrangement, and therefore may not be able to make a timely qualifying election fund (“QEF”) election for such stock and may be subject to the adverse U.S. tax treatment.

Potential investors who are U.S. shareholders are urged to consult their own tax advisors regarding the application of the PFIC rules, including the related reporting requirements and the advisability of making any available election under the PFIC rules, with respect to their ownership and disposition of common shares. Each potential investor who is a U.S. shareholder should consult its own tax advisor regarding the tax consequences of the PFIC rules and the acquisition, ownership, and disposition of the common shares.

Proposed and Recently Enacted Tax and Other Legislation in the U.S. and Canada

Changes to U.S. tax laws (which changes may have retroactive application) could adversely affect the Company or holders of the common shares.In recent years, many changes to U.S. federal income tax laws have been proposed and made, and additional changes to U.S. federal income tax laws are likely to continue to occur in the future.

The U.S. Congress is currently considering numerous items of legislation which may be enacted prospectively or with retroactive effect, which legislation could adversely impact the Company's financial performance and the value of the common shares.Additionally, states in which the Company operates or owns assets may impose new or increased taxes. If enacted, most of the proposals would be effective for the current or later years. The proposed legislation remains subject to change, and its impact on the Company and purchasers of common shares is uncertain.

In addition, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 includes provisions that will impact the U.S. federal income taxation of corporations. Among other items, this legislation includes provisions that will impose a minimum tax on the book income of certain large corporations and an excise tax on certain corporate stock repurchases that would be imposed on the corporation repurchasing such stock. It is unclear how this legislation will be implemented by the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Company cannot predict how this legislation or any future changes in tax laws might affect the Company or purchasers of the common shares.

On March 28, 2023, the government of Canada released its 2023 federal budget which includes provisions that will impact the Canadian federal income taxation of corporations.Similar to the U.S. measure relating to corporate stock repurchases, Canada has proposed a 2% tax on the net value of equity repurchases by certain publicly traded entities. The application of the tax will be subject to certain exceptions and anti-avoidance provisions. As of the date of this annual report, draft

legislation has yet to be released and the impact of this legislation or any future changes in tax laws on the Company and shareholders of the Company cannot be predicted.

Global Geopolitical Instability and Risks

The Russian war in Ukraine, conflict in the Middle East, inflation and other factors continue to impact global markets and cause general economic uncertainty, the impact of which may have a material adverse effect on the Company's business, financial position, results of operations and prospects.

The concerns over general global economic conditions, fluctuations in interest and foreign exchange rates, stock market volatility, geopolitical issues, Russia's war in Ukraine, conflict in the Middle East and inflation have contributed to increased economic uncertainty and diminished expectations for the global economy.

Concerns over global economic conditions may also have the effect of heightening many of the other risks described herein, including, but not limited to, risks relating to: fluctuations in the market price of lithium-based products, the development of Thacker Pass, the terms and availability of financing, cost overruns, geopolitical concerns, and changes in law, policies or regulatory requirements.

Risks Related to Our Business and Securities

Significant Shareholder and Commercial Relationship Risks

GM (as defined below) currently holds 9.25% of the outstanding Common Shares. The closing of the Tranche 2 Investment will result in a significant increase in GM’s holdings of the Company. Additionally, GM has a commercial relationship with the Company in respect of Thacker Pass under the Offtake Agreement (as defined below), and possesses board nomination rights, oversight and securities offering participation rights in respect of the Company pursuant to the Investor Rights Agreement (as defined below).

As a result of its significant current and anticipated share holdings and investor rights, GM may have the ability to influence the outcome of corporate actions requiring shareholder approval, including the election of directors of the Company and the approval of certain corporate transactions. There is a risk that the interests of GM may diverge from those of other shareholders and also discourage transactions involving a change of control, including transactions in which an investor, as a holder of the Company's securities, would otherwise receive a premium for the Company's securities over the then current market price. The significant holdings of GM could also create a risk that the Company's securities are less liquid and trade at a relative discount compared to circumstances where GM did not have the ability to influence or determine matters affecting the Company. Additionally, dispositions by significant shareholders could also have an adverse effect on the market price of the Common Shares.

Risks Relating to the GM Transaction

There is a risk that the Tranche 2 Investment is not completed. The Tranche 2 Investment is subject to a number of conditions and approvals, including the Company securing sufficient funding to complete the development of Phase 1 of Thacker Pass, among other conditions. Many of these conditions are outside the control of the Company and there can be no certainty that all conditions to the Tranche 2 Investment of the GM Transaction will be satisfied or completed.

In addition, there can be no certainty that the potential benefits of the Tranche 2 Investment will be realized, and there is a risk that the dilution of the interests of shareholders of the Company arising from the investment in the Company will have an impact on the trading price for, and the market for trading in, the securities of the Company. As a result of the closing of the Tranche 1 Investment, GM received a set of investor rights, based upon certain ownership thresholds and production commitments with the Company, which may affect the rights and entitlements of other securityholders of the Company adversely and restrict certain actions of the Company, including with respect to board nomination rights, oversight, and participation in future equity issuances of the Company.

Share Price Risks

The market price of the Common Shares may in the future be subject to significant fluctuations as a result of many factors, some of which are beyond the Company's control. Among the factors that could affect the Company's stock price are:

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quarterly variations in the Company’s results of operations;

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changes in market valuations of similar companies and stock market price and volume fluctuations generally;

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changes in earnings estimates or the publication of research reports by analysts;

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speculation in the press or investment community about the Company's business or the mining industry generally;

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strategic actions by the Company or its competitors such as acquisitions or restructurings;

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a thin trading market for the Common Shares may develop, which could make the market somewhat illiquid;

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regulatory developments;

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additions or departures of key personnel;

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the selling price of lithium;

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general market conditions; and

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domestic and international economic, market and currency factors unrelated to our performance.

The stock markets have experienced extreme volatility that has sometimes been unrelated to the operating performance of individual companies. These broad market fluctuations may adversely affect the trading price of the Common Shares.

Additionally, there is no guarantee of a continuing public market to resell the Common Shares. The Company cannot assure investors that an active and liquid public market for the Common Shares will develop or continue.

Risks of Dilution

The Company may issue additional Common Shares or other equity securities of equal or senior rank in the future in connection with, among other things, future exploration, development and acquisition plans, repayment of outstanding indebtedness or issuances and exercises under the Company’s equity incentive plan, without shareholder approval, in a number of circumstances.

Issuance of additional Common Shares or other equity securities of equal or senior rank would have the following effects:

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existing shareholders' proportionate ownership interest in the Company will decrease;

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the amount of cash available for dividends payable on the Common Shares may decrease or be nil;

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the relative voting strength of each previously outstanding Common Share may be diminished; and

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the market price of the Common Shares may decline.

Risks of Enforcing U.S. Judgments

The Company is incorporated in a jurisdiction outside the United States. In addition, certain of the directors and officers are non-residents of the U.S., and all or a substantial portion of the assets of these non-residents will be located outside the U.S. As a result, it may be difficult or impossible for U.S. investors to serve process within the United States upon the Company or certain directors and officers or to enforce a judgment against the Company for civil liabilities in U.S. courts. In addition, investors should not assume that courts in the country in which the Company is incorporated (1) would enforce judgments of U.S. courts obtained in actions against the Company based upon the civil liability provisions of applicable U.S. federal and state securities laws or (2) would enforce, in original actions, liabilities against the Company based on those laws.

Thacker Pass Financing Risks

The Company has significant capital requirements associated with the development of Thacker Pass and will require additional financing to advance the project into construction as planned. In addition, a condition of the Tranche 2 Investment is that the Company must secure sufficient funding to complete the development of Phase 1 of Thacker Pass.

The Company may need to access the capital markets to obtain long-term and short-term financing. The Company has not previously accessed the capital markets as a separate public company, and the Company’s access to, and the availability of, financing on acceptable terms and conditions in the future will be impacted by many factors including the Company’s business prospects and financial performance, its credit ratings or absence thereof, the liquidity of the overall capital markets and the state of the economy. The Company may not have access to the capital markets at the times and in the amounts needed or on terms acceptable to it.

The Company may pursue additional equity or debt financing, which could have a dilutive effect on existing security holders if shares, options, warrants or other convertible securities are issued, or result in additional or more onerous restrictions on the Company's business, and substantial interest and capital payments if new debt financing is obtained. The Company submitted an application to the DOE through the ATVM loan program as partial financing for Thacker Pass, for which a conditional commitment was received on March 12, 2024. The DOE Loan is not expected to have a dilutive effect but would result in the Company being more highly leveraged, which could have a material adverse effect on the Company's future prospects if it is unable to satisfy its debt obligations as they become due.

The ability of the Company to arrange additional financing for Thacker Pass in the future will depend, in part, on prevailing capital market conditions as well as the business performance of the Company. Failure to obtain additional financing on a timely basis may cause the Company to postpone, abandon, reduce or terminate its operations and could have a material adverse effect on the Company's business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.

Intellectual Property Risks

The Company relies on the ability to protect its intellectual property rights and depends on patent, trademark and trade secret legislation to protect its proprietary know-how. There is no assurance that the Company has adequately protected or will be able to adequately protect its valuable intellectual property rights, or will at all times have access to all intellectual property rights that are required to conduct its business or pursue its strategies, or that the Company will be able to adequately protect itself against any intellectual property infringement claims. There is also a risk that the Company's competitors could independently develop similar technology, processes or know-how; that the Company's trade secrets could be revealed to third parties; that any current or future patents, pending or granted, will be broad enough to protect the Company's intellectual property rights; or, that foreign intellectual property laws will adequately protect such rights. The inability to protect the Company's intellectual property could have a material adverse effect on the Company's business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.

Risks of Relying on Consultants

The Company has relied on, and may continue to rely on, consultants and others for mineral exploration and exploitation expertise. The Company believes that those consultants are competent and that they have carried out their work in accordance with internationally recognized industry standards. However, if the work conducted by those consultants is ultimately found to be incorrect or inadequate in any material respect, the Company may experience delays or increased costs in developing its properties.

No History of Dividends

No dividends on common shares were paid by Old LAC since incorporation to the date of the Separation, or by the Company after the Separation. The Company currently has no ability to generate earnings as Thacker Pass is in the development stage. If development of Thacker Pass is successfully completed, the Company anticipates that it will retain its earnings and other cash resources for future operations and the ongoing development of its business. As such, the Company does not intend to declare or pay any cash dividends in the foreseeable future. Payment of any future dividends is solely at the discretion of the Company's board of directors (the “Board”), which will consider many factors including the Company's operating results, financial condition and anticipated cash needs. For these reasons, the Company may never pay dividends.

Talent Risks

The Company highly values the contributions of its key personnel. The future success of the Company will continue to depend largely upon the performance of key officers, employees and consultants who have advanced the Company’s business to its current stage of development and contributed to its potential for future growth. The market for qualified talent has become increasingly competitive, with shortages of qualified talent relative to the number of available opportunities being experienced in all markets where the Company conducts its operations. At the operational level, full execution of construction and operating plans could be impacted by labor shortages in the Humboldt County area or the inability to attract and train personnel to the area. The ability to remain competitive by offering higher compensation packages and programs for growth and development of personnel, with a view to retaining existing talent and attracting new talent, has become increasingly important to the Company and its operations in the current climate. Any prolonged inability to retain key individuals, or to attract and retain new talent as the Company grows, could have a material adverse effect upon the Company's business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.

Additionally, the Company has not purchased any "key-man" insurance for any of its directors, officers or key employees and currently has no plans to do so.

Risks of Legal Proceedings

The Company may be subject to a variety of regulatory requirements, and resulting investigations, claims, lawsuits and other proceedings in the ordinary course of its business, as a result of its status as a publicly traded company and because of its mining exploration and development business. Litigation related to environmental and climate change-related matters, and environmental, social and governance disclosure is also on the rise. The occurrence and outcome of any legal proceedings cannot be predicted with any reasonable degree of certainty due to the inherently uncertain nature of litigation, including the effects of discovery of new evidence or advancement of new legal theories, the difficulty of predicting decisions of judges and juries and the possibility that decisions may be reversed on appeal. Defense and settlement costs of legal claims can be substantial, even with respect to claims that are determined to have little or no merit.

Litigation may be costly and time-consuming, and can divert the attention of management and key personnel away from day-to-day business operations. The Company and its projects are, from time-to-time, subject to legal proceedings or the threat of legal proceedings. If the Company were to be unsuccessful in defending any material claims against it, or unable to settle such claims on a satisfactory basis, the Company may be faced with significant monetary damages, injunctive relief or other negative impacts that could have a material adverse effect on the Company's business and financial condition. To the extent the Company is involved in any active litigation, the outcome of such matters may not be determinable, and it may not be possible to accurately predict the outcome or quantum of any such proceedings at a given time.

Information Technology and Cybersecurity Risks

Threats to information technology systems associated with cybersecurity risks and cyber incidents or attacks continue to grow and evolve in terms of severity and sophistication, particularly as a result of remote work. A cybersecurity attack has the potential to compromise the business, financial and other systems of the Company, and could go unnoticed for some time. Risks associated with cybersecurity threats include, among other things, loss of intellectual property, disruption of business operations and safety procedures, loss or damage to worksite data delivery systems, privacy and confidentiality breaches, and increased costs and time to prevent, respond to or mitigate cybersecurity incidents. The occurrence of a significant cybersecurity incident could have a material adverse effect on the Company's business and result in a prolonged disruption to it.

Risks of Loss of Foreign Private Issuer Status

As a "foreign private issuer,"as such term is defined under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), the Company is exempt from certain of the provisions of U.S. federal securities laws. However, if the Company were to lose its status as a foreign private issuer, the Company may become subject to more onerous regulatory and reporting requirements in the United States. Compliance with these additional regulatory and reporting requirements under U.S. securities laws would likely result in increased expenses and would require the Company's management to devote substantial time and resources to comply with new regulatory requirements. Further, to the extent that the Company were to offer or sell securities outside of the United States, the Company would have to comply with the more restrictive Regulation S requirements that apply to U.S. domestic companies, and the Company will not be able to utilize the multijurisdictional disclosure system forms for registered offerings by Canadian companies in the United States, which could increase the costs of accessing capital markets compared to if the Company was a foreign private issuer able to rely on the multijurisdictional disclosure system. In addition, the Company may lose the ability to rely upon exemptions from NYSE corporate governance requirements that are available to foreign private issuers, which may further increase the Company's costs of compliance.

The Company could lose its status as a foreign private issuer if more than 50% of the Company's outstanding voting securities are directly or indirectly held of record by U.S. holders as of the end of the Company's second fiscal quarter and any one of the following is true: (i) the majority of the Company's directors or executive officers are U.S. citizens or residents; (ii) more than 50% of the Company's assets are located in the United States; or (iii) the Company's business is administered principally in the United States. The Company's only material mining project, Thacker Pass, is located in the United States and a majority of the Company's directors and executive officers may be U.S. citizens or residents. While its head office will be in Canada, a substantial portion of the Company's business will be administered principally in the United States. In this case, if more than 50% of the Company's outstanding voting securities are directly or indirectly held of record by U.S. holders as of the end of the Company's second fiscal quarter following completion of the Separation, the Company could lose its status as a foreign private issuer.

Risk of Substantial Tax Liabilities Related to the Separation

In connection with the Arrangement, Old LAC applied for and received certain advance income tax rulings in Canada and the United States (together, the "Tax Rulings"). The Canadian Tax Ruling requested from Canadian tax authorities and received on July 12, 2023 requires, among other things, that the transfer of LAC North America comply with all requirements of the public company "butterfly" rules in section 55 of the Income Tax Act (Canada) (the "Tax Act"). Although the Arrangement was structured to comply with these rules, there are certain requirements of these rules that depend on events occurring after the Arrangement was completed or that may not be within the control of the Company and/or Lithium Argentina. For example, under section 55 of the Tax Act, the Company and/or Lithium Argentina will recognize a taxable gain on the transfer by Old LAC of LAC North America if: (i) a "specified shareholder" of the Company or of Lithium Argentina disposes of Company or Lithium Argentina shares (or property that derives 10% or more of its fair market value from such shares or property substituted therefor) to an unrelated person or partnership as part of the series of transactions which includes the transfer by Old LAC of LAC North America, (ii) there is an acquisition of control of the Company or Lithium Argentina that is part of the series of transactions that includes the transfer by Old LAC of LAC North America, (iii) a person unrelated to the Company acquires (generally otherwise than as a result of a disposition in the ordinary course of operations of the Company), as part of the series of transactions that includes the transfer by Old LAC of LAC North America, property acquired by the Company on the Separation that has a fair market value greater than 10% of the fair market value of all property received by the Company on the Separation, (iv) a person unrelated to Lithium Argentina acquires (generally otherwise than as a result of a disposition in the ordinary course of operations of Lithium Argentina), as part of the series of transactions that includes the transfer by Old LAC of LAC North America, property retained by Lithium Argentina on the Separation that has a fair market value greater than 10% of the fair market value of all property retained by Lithium Argentina on the Separation, or (v) certain persons acquire shares of Lithium Argentina (other than in specified permitted transactions) in contemplation of, and as part of the series of transactions that includes, the transfer by Old LAC of LAC North America. If these requirements are not met, the Company and/or Lithium Argentina would recognize a taxable gain in respect of the transfer by Old LAC of LAC North America to the Company as part of the Separation. If incurred, these tax liabilities could be substantial and could have a material adverse effect on the financial position of the Company and/or Lithium Argentina. Under the terms of the Tax Indemnity and Cooperation Agreement (as defined below), the Company and Lithium Argentina would generally be required to indemnify the other party for any such tax if it is the result of the indemnifying party (or its affiliates) breaching its covenant not to take any action, omit to take any action or enter into a transaction that could cause the Arrangement or any related transaction to be treated in a manner inconsistent with the Canadian Tax Ruling.

Risks Related to Tax Treatment of the Arrangement

In connection with the Arrangement, Old LAC received a U.S. Tax Ruling from the IRS on July 13, 2023 substantially to the effect that the receipt of Common Shares by the Company’s shareholders pursuant to the Arrangement will be tax-free for U.S. federal income tax purposes under Section 355(a) of the Code. The U.S. Tax Ruling relies on, among other things, certain facts and assumptions, as well as certain representations, statements, and undertakings of Lithium Argentina and the Company (including those relating to the past and future conduct of Lithium Argentina and the Company). Notwithstanding the receipt of the U.S. Tax Ruling, the IRS could determine on audit that receipt of Common Shares by the Company’s shareholders was treated as a taxable transaction if the IRS determines that any of the facts, assumptions, representations, statements or undertakings upon which the U.S. Tax Ruling was based are inaccurate or have been violated. If the IRS were successful in taking this position, the receipt of Common Shares by the Company’s shareholders pursuant to the Arrangement may be treated as a taxable dividend from the Company or capital gain with respect to such shareholders' ownership of Common Shares for U.S. federal income tax purposes, in which case U.S. Shareholders may be subject to significant U.S. federal income tax liabilities. In addition, certain events that may or may not be within the control of the Company could cause the Arrangement to subsequently fail to qualify as generally tax-free for U.S. federal income tax purposes under Section 355 of the Code, resulting in the receipt of Common Shares by the Company’s shareholders pursuant to the Arrangement being taxable to U.S. Shareholders as described immediately above. Accordingly, the Company cannot provide assurance that the intended U.S. tax treatment will be achieved or that U.S. Shareholders will not incur substantial U.S. federal income tax liabilities from the receipt of Common Shares pursuant to the Arrangement.

Certain Restrictions that may Significantly Reduce Strategic and Operating Flexibility

As described above, pursuant to the U.S. Tax Ruling received from the IRS, it is expected that the receipt of Common Shares by the Company’s shareholders pursuant to the Arrangement will be tax-free for U.S. federal income tax purposes under Section 355(a) of the Code. To preserve the intended U.S. federal income tax treatment of the receipt of Common Shares by the Company’s shareholders pursuant to the Arrangement, Lithium Argentina and the Company agreed in the Tax Indemnity and Cooperation Agreement to be restricted, except in specific circumstances, from taking or failing to take certain actions that could cause the receipt of Common Shares by the Company’s shareholders pursuant to the Arrangement to be taxed in a manner that is inconsistent with the manner provided for in the U.S. Tax Ruling. These restrictions may limit the ability of the Company to pursue certain strategic transactions or other transactions that it believes to be in the best interests of its shareholders or that might increase the value of its business for three years following the completion of the Arrangement.

Risks of Indemnification Obligations

Pursuant to the Tax Indemnity and Cooperation Agreement, Lithium Argentina and the Company agreed to a number of representations, warranties and covenants, including agreeing to indemnify and hold harmless the other party against any loss suffered or incurred resulting from, or in connection with, a breach of certain tax-related covenants. Any indemnification claim against the Company could be substantial, may not be able to be satisfied and may have a material adverse effect upon the Company.

Risks Related to “Passive Foreign Investment Company”

If the Company is classified as a "passive foreign investment company" ("PFIC") within the meaning of Section 1297 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Code") for U.S. federal income tax purposes, during a U.S. Shareholder’s (as defined below) holding period of its Common Shares, then such U.S. Shareholder generally will be required to treat any gain realized upon a disposition of Common Shares, or any “excess distribution” received on its Common Shares, as ordinary income, and to pay an interest charge on a portion of such gain or distribution, unless the U.S. Shareholder makes a timely and effective qualified electing fund election (“QEF Election”) or a mark-to-market election with respect to the Common Shares. A U.S. Shareholder who makes a QEF Election generally must report on a current basis its share of the Company's net capital gain and ordinary earnings for any year in which the Company is a PFIC, whether or not the Company distributes any amounts to its shareholders. A U.S. Shareholder who makes the mark-to-market election generally must include as ordinary income each year the excess of the fair market value of the Common Shares over the taxpayer’s adjusted tax basis therein.

The Company believes it was classified as a PFIC for its most recently completed taxable year. Based on its current business plans and expected income, assets and activities, the Company expects that it may be classified as a PFIC for its current tax year and may be a PFIC for subsequent tax years. The determination of whether the Company is a PFIC depends upon the composition of its income and assets and the nature of its activities from time to time and must be made annually as of the close of each taxable year. The PFIC determination also depends on the application of complex U.S. federal income tax rules that are subject to differing interpretations. Thus, there can be no assurance that the Company will not be classified as a PFIC for any taxable year, or that the United States Internal Revenue Service (the "IRS") or a court will agree with the Company's determination as to its PFIC status.

This brief summary is qualified in its entirety by the discussion below under the heading “Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations.” Potential investors who are U.S. Shareholders are urged to consult their own tax advisors regarding the application of the PFIC rules, including the related reporting requirements and the advisability of making any available election under the PFIC rules, with respect to their ownership and disposition of Common Shares. Each potential investor who is a U.S. Shareholder should consult its own tax advisor regarding the tax consequences of the PFIC rules and the acquisition, ownership, and disposition of the Common Shares.

Proposed and Recently Enacted Tax and Other Legislation in the U.S. and Canada

Changes to U.S. tax laws (which changes may have retroactive application) could adversely affect the Company or holders of the Common Shares. In recent years, many changes to U.S. federal income tax laws have been proposed and made, and additional changes to U.S. federal income tax laws are likely to continue to occur in the future.

If enacted, most of the proposals would be effective for the current or later years. The proposed legislation remains subject to change, and its impact on the Company and purchasers of Common Shares is uncertain.

In addition, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 includes provisions that impact the U.S. federal income taxation of corporations. Among other items, this legislation includes provisions that impose a minimum tax on the book income of certain large corporations and an excise tax on certain corporate stock repurchases that is imposed on the corporation purchasing such stock. It is unclear how this legislation will be implemented by the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Company cannot predict how this legislation or any future changes in tax laws might affect the Company or purchasers of the Common Shares.

On November 30, 2023, the government of Canada tabled Bill C-59 in Parliament, which includes draft legislation to implement certain tax measures from the 2023 federal budget released on March 28, 2023. Similar to the U.S. measure relating to corporate stock repurchases, Canada has proposed a 2% tax on the net value of equity repurchases by certain publicly traded entities. The application of the tax will be subject to certain exceptions and anti-avoidance provisions. The proposed application date for these measures is January 1, 2024. However, as of the date of this annual report, Bill C-59 was not substantively enacted and the impact of this legislation or any future changes in tax laws on the Company and shareholders of the Company cannot be predicted.

ITEM 4. INFORMATION ON THE COMPANY

A. History and Development of the Company

Overview

The Company was incorporated under the Business Corporations Act (British Columbia) for the sole purpose of acquiring ownership of LAC North America from Old LAC, which is now named Lithium Americas (Argentina) Corp.

The Company's head office and registered office is located at 400 - 900 West Hastings Street, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, V6C 1E5, and our telephone number is (778) 656-5820.

The Separation

On January 23, 2023, the Company was incorporated under the BCBCA for the sole purpose of acquiring ownership of LAC North America of Old LAC, which is now named Lithium Argentina pursuant to the Separation that was undertaken on October 3, 2023. The Separation was implemented by way of an Arrangement under the laws of British Columbia pursuant to an arrangement agreement between the Company and Old LAC. Upon completion of the Separation, Old LAC contributed to the Company, among other assets and liabilities, its interest in Thacker Pass, its investments in GT1 and Ascend Elements certain intellectual property rights, its loan to 1339480 B.C. Ltd., and cash of $275.5 million, including $75 million to establish sufficient working capital. The Company then distributed its common shares to shareholders of Old LAC in a series of share exchanges. The Separation was pro rata to the shareholders of Old LAC, so that the holders maintained the same proportionate interest in Old LAC and the Company both immediately before and immediately after the Separation.

Old LAC's North American and Argentine business units represented two distinct businesses in its portfolio, each of which had assets with significant value to be unlocked. The separation of Old LAC into two public entities, Lithium Argentina and the Company, was designed to provide each of them with a sharper strategic focus and enhanced operational flexibility that may not have been available to them as a consolidated company.

Specifically, decoupling Old LAC's North American business from Old LAC's Argentine business was expected to allow the Company to benefit more fully from funding opportunities available only to U.S. businesses in the critical minerals space and remove development and operational risks flowing from the Argentina portfolio, which would facilitate the advancement of Thacker Pass towards production.

The Separation also provided the Company with the potential opportunity for enhanced access to growth capital by enabling it to tailor an independent capital allocation, investment decision process and financing solutions. For instance, providing differentiated investment opportunities to investors, many of whom are solely interested in or highly value one of Old LAC's two business units over the other, would greatly enhance the funding options available to the separated entities.

Thacker Pass Highlights

•

On March 12, 2024, the Company received a conditional commitment (“Conditional Commitment”) from the DOE for a $2.26 billion DOE Loan under the ATVM loan program for financing the construction of the processing facilities at Thacker Pass, targeting to produce an initial 40,000 tonnes per year (“tpa”) of battery grade lithium carbonate (“Phase 1”). The DOE Loan plus the strategic investment from General Motors Holdings LLC ("GM") are expected to provide the majority of the capital necessary to fund Phase 1.

•

Site preparation for major earthworks has been completed, including all site clearing, commissioning a water supply system, site access improvements and site infrastructure.

•

The Company is currently focused on advancing detailed engineering, procurement and execution planning for the construction of Thacker Pass Phase 1. Detailed engineering is approximately 30% design complete to date, and the Company plans to continue to increase the level of detailed engineering in advance of issuing full notice to proceed (“FNTP”), which is expected in the second half of 2024.

•

The Company leased a parcel of land in the nearby City of Winnemucca for a transloading terminal (“TLT”) to be used during operations, providing direct access to the mainline railroad and an interstate highway.

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The Company and its engineering, procurement and construction management (“EPCM”) contractor, Bechtel Corporation, entered into a National Construction Agreement (Project Labor Agreement) (“PLA”) with North America’s Building Trades Unions (“NABTU”) for construction of Thacker Pass.

•

Estimated total capital cost (“CAPEX”) for Phase 1 construction has been revised to $2.93 billion to reflect updated quantities and execution planning tied to increased engineering progress, use of union labor through a PLA for construction of Thacker Pass, development of an all-inclusive housing facility for construction workers, updated equipment pricing and a larger project contingency.

•

During the year ended December 31, 2023, $193.7 million was spent on Thacker Pass. The Company expects capital expenditures to be significantly lower in the first half of 2024 as the focus turns from early works to advancing detailed engineering and project planning ahead of FNTP.

•

In December 2023, the U.S. District Court issued a final order and judgment dismissing a lawsuit that was filed in February 2023 by three tribes asserting among other claims, inadequate consultation by the BLM prior to the issuance of the ROD for Thacker Pass.

For additional information regarding Thacker Pass, see "Item 4.D - Property, Plants and Equipment."

Corporate Highlights

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As of December 31, 2023, the Company had approximately $196 million in cash and cash equivalents.

•

In light of current market conditions and to preserve strong liquidity, the Company has reduced project
capital expenditures to minimal levels until closing of the DOE Loan and issuance of FNTP, which are
expected in the second half of the year. In addition, the Company has taken actions to reduce its general and administrative and operating expense budget for 2024 by more than 25%.

Available Information

The SEC maintains an internet site (http://www.sec.gov) that contains reports, proxy and information statements and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC. Such information can also be found on the Company’s website (https://www.lithiumamericas.com/).

For additional information regarding the history and development of the Company, see the Management's Discussion and Analysis of the Company for the year ended December 31, 2023 incorporated by reference into this Form 20-F as Exhibit 15.12.

B. Business Overview

Overview

The Company is a Canadian-based resource company focused on the advancement of significant lithium projects. The Company strives to operate under the highest ESG-S standards to foster the sustainable advancement of projects that support the vital lithium supply chain and the global transition to cleaner energy. Our flagship project is Thacker Pass, a sedimentary-based lithium deposit located in the McDermitt Caldera in Humboldt County, in northern Nevada. The Company owns 100% of Thacker Pass through its wholly-owned U.S. subsidiary, Lithium Nevada Corp. (“Lithium Nevada”). The Company also holds investments in GT1 and Ascend Elements, and exploration properties in the U.S. and Canada.

For additional information regarding the business of the Company, see the Management's Discussion and Analysis of the Company for the year ended December 31, 2023 incorporated by reference into this Form 20-F as Exhibit 15.12.

Seasonality

The Thacker Pass project could be affected by seasonal factors affecting the business including but not limited to the availability of power resources and considerations relating to wildlife sensitivity, which could be influenced by seasonal variability due to stresses on those resources. The lithium chemicals business is also subject to commercial business cycles and commodity price cycles. If the global economy stalls and commodity prices decline, a continuing period of lower prices could significantly affect the economic potential of our properties and result in us deciding to cease work on, or drop our interest in, our properties.

Sources and Availability of Raw Materials

All of the raw materials that the Company requires to carry on its business are available through normal supply or business contracting channels.

Government Regulations

The Company's exploration and future development activities are subject to various national, state, provincial and local laws and regulations in the U.S. and Canada, which govern prospecting, development, mining, production, exports, taxes, labor standards, occupational health, waste disposal, protection of the environment, mine safety, hazardous substances and other matters.

Mining and exploration activities at Thacker Pass are subject to various laws and regulations relating to the protection of the environment, which are discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" in this annual report. Although the Company intends to comply with all existing environmental and mining laws and regulations, no assurance can be given that the Company will be in compliance with all applicable regulations or that new rules and regulations will not be enacted or that existing rules and regulations will not be applied in a manner that could limit or curtail development of its properties. Amendments to current laws and regulations governing exploration and development or more stringent implementation thereof could have a material adverse effect on the Company's business and cause increases in exploration expenses or require delays or abandonment in the development of mining properties. In addition, the Company is required to expend significant resources to comply with numerous corporate governance and disclosure regulations and requirements adopted by U.S. federal and Canadian federal and provincial governments. These additional compliance costs and related diversion of the attention of management and key personnel could have a material adverse effect on our business.

Except as described in this annual report, the Company believes that it is in compliance, in all material respects, with applicable mining, health, safety and environmental statutes and regulations.

For a more detailed discussion of the various government laws and regulations in the U.S. applicable to our operations and the potential negative effects of such laws and regulations, see the section "Item 3.D - Risk Factors."

Lithium Industry and Competition

Lithium currently has many end uses, including ceramics and glass, batteries, greases, air treatment and pharmaceuticals. However, it is the battery industry that is expected to predominantly drive future demand growth for lithium. This is expected to come from several areas: (i) the transportation industry's electrification of automobiles, buses, delivery vehicles, motorcycles, bicycles and boats using lithium-ion battery technology, (ii) large format batteries for utility grid-scale storage, and (iii) the continued growth of small format batteries for cell phones, laptops, digital cameras and hand-held power tools.

A small number of companies dominate the production of end-use lithium products such as lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide. Currently the majority of global production occurs in brine deposits in South America and spodumene hard-rock deposits in Australia. There are a small number of additional companies who have initiated lithium-based production in recent years, as well as numerous additional companies pursuing the development of lithium mineral deposits throughout several jurisdictions.

C. Organizational Structure

The following diagram sets out the organizational structure of the Company:

D. Property, Plants and Equipment

In connection with the Separation, Old LAC contributed Thacker Pass to the Company.

Overview of the Project

Thacker Pass is located in northern Humboldt County, Nevada and hosts a large sedimentary-based lithium Mineral Resource and Mineral Reserve, as well as significant additional sedimentary-based lithium mineralization that has not yet been subject to sufficient exploration or analysis to undertake Mineral Resource estimation.

As at December 31, 2023, the net book value for the Thacker Pass property was $202.8 million, and the net book value for exploration and evaluation assets was $0.8 million.

For additional information regarding Thacker Pass, see the Management's Discussion and Analysis of the Company for the year ended December 31, 2023 incorporated by reference into this Form 20-F as Exhibit 15.12.

Recent Developments

Capital Cost Estimate

Together with Bechtel Corporation and other major mining and processing plant contractors, the Company has further refined the Thacker Pass Phase 1 estimated total CAPEX, following the Thacker Pass 1300 Report estimate. The revised CAPEX estimate of $2.93 billion reflects steps the Company has taken to de-risk construction, including:(1)

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Achieving a higher degree of engineering, advancing estimates of key quantities and execution plans;

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Increasing project contingency to 15%;

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Updating labor costs due to an increase in estimated number of construction workers to approximately 1,800 and substantially de-risking skilled labor availability with the PLA;

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Securing land and temporary housing facility for the Workforce Hub in Winnemucca for construction workers; and

•

Updating pricing for over 70% of procurement packages to reflect current market conditions.

During the year ended December 31, 2023, $193.7 million was spent on Thacker Pass. The majority of capital expenditures are expected in 2025 as the project ramps up to peak construction.

(1) The $2.93 billion presented here is not used in the Economic Analysis presented in the Technical Report Summary in the
Detailed Property Description section.

Project Timeline

Mechanical completion of Thacker Pass Phase 1 is targeted for 2027 following a three-year construction period. Major construction is expected to commence in the second half of 2024 following the anticipated closing of the DOE Loan and issuance of full notice to proceed. The Company anticipates a commissioning and ramp-up period of six to twelve months, targeting achieving full capacity production in 2028. Subsequent to the filing of the Reports, the Company has revised the target timeline with respect to its proposed plan for Thacker Pass. Please see "Recent Developments" above for additional information relating to this revised target timing. The proposed execution plan for Thacker Pass incorporates an integrated strategy for EPCM.

Project Financing

DOE ATVM Loan Program

On March 12, 2024, the Company received a Conditional Commitment from the DOE for a DOE Loan for financing the construction of the processing facilities at Thacker Pass for Phase 1. Based on the terms of the Conditional Commitment, the DOE Loan for $2.26 billion will have a 24-year maturity with interest rates fixed from the date of each monthly advance for the term of the loan at applicable U.S. Treasury rates. The DOE Loan amount includes interest accrued during construction, which is estimated to be $290 million over the three-year period.

The DOE Loan Conditional Commitment follows receipt of the Letter of Substantial Completion in February 2023. Over the past year, the DOE undertook a robust due diligence process to review all key aspects of Thacker Pass and complete term sheet details. While this Conditional Commitment represents a significant milestone and demonstrates the DOE’s intent to finance Thacker Pass, certain technical, legal and financial conditions, including negotiation of definitive financing documents, must be satisfied before funding of the DOE Loan.

The expected funding from the DOE Loan, plus GM's $650 million strategic investment and cash on hand, are expected to provide the vast majority of the capital necessary to fund construction of Thacker Pass Phase 1.

General Motors Investment and Offtake

On January 30, 2023, Old LAC entered into a purchase agreement with GM, pursuant to which GM agreed to make a $650 million equity investment, the proceeds of which are to be used for the construction and development of Thacker Pass. The Transaction is comprised of two tranches, with the $320 million Tranche 1 Investment and the Tranche 2 Investment investment of up to $330 million. The Tranche 1 Investment closed on February 16, 2023 when GM subscribed for 15,002,000 subscription receipts of Old LAC, which were automatically converted into 15,002,000 units comprising 15,002,000 shares and 11,891,000 warrants of Old LAC which became 15,002,000 Common Shares post-Separation. The subscription proceeds were paid to Old LAC and the remaining unspent proceeds were distributed to the Company on October 3, 2023 pursuant to the Arrangement.

On October 3, 2023 pursuant to the Separation, the full amount of the remaining unspent proceeds of the Tranche 1 investment were included in the net assets distributed by Old LAC to the Company.

As the Separation was completed before the closing of the Tranche 2 Investment, on October 3, 2023, the agreement for the Tranche 2 Investment in Old LAC was terminated and replaced by a corresponding subscription agreement between GM and the Company whereby the proceeds of the Tranche 2 Investment will be received by the Company.

Pursuant to the second tranche subscription agreement, GM will purchase common shares of the Company subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions precedent, including the Funding Condition that the Company secures sufficient funding to complete the development of Phase 1 for Thacker Pass. The subscription agreement calls for an aggregate purchase price of up to $330 million, with the number of shares to be determined using a conversion price equal to the lower of (a) the 5-day volume weighted average share price (which is determined as of the date the notice that the Funding Condition has been met) and (b) $17.36 per share. The conditions precedent under the second tranche subscription agreement must be met by August 16, 2024.

As part of the Arrangement, the Offtake Agreement was assigned by Old LAC to the Company.

Pursuant to the Offtake Agreement, GM may purchase up to 100% of Thacker Pass Phase 1 production at a price based on prevailing market rates. The term of the arrangement for Phase 1 production is ten years, subject to a five-year extension at GM’s option and other limited extensions. Pursuant to the Offtake Agreement, the Company has also granted GM a right of first offer on Thacker Pass Phase 2 production. The volume available under the Offtake Agreement is subject to the receipt of the second tranche of GM’s investment and may be reduced proportionately in certain circumstances if GM’s remaining investment is less than $330 million.

Regulatory and Permitting

BLM Record of Decision

Lithium Nevada, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, was issued a ROD by the BLM on January 15, 2021 for the proposed mine, plant and ancillary facilities that are part of Thacker Pass. The BLM also approved Lithium Nevada’s proposal to conduct exploration work to the north and south of the proposed Thacker Pass site and processing facilities. The ROD was issued following the BLM's National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 ("NEPA") review process for Thacker Pass, which included the BLM’s preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement. This NEPA process is designed to help public officials complete permitting decisions that are protective of the environment and includes a public engagement process. The approved Mine Plan of Operations ("MPO") contemplates production of battery-grade lithium hydroxide, lithium carbonate and lithium metal (estimating approximately 66,000 short tpa of lithium carbonate equivalent).

The BLM's issuance of the ROD was challenged in U.S. District Court, District of Nevada (“U.S. District Court”) in 2021 (the "Initial ROD Challenge"), with the court rendering a favorable ruling on February 6, 2023, which declined to vacate the ROD for Thacker Pass. The U.S. District Court did not impose any restrictions expected to impact the construction timeline for Thacker Pass, but the court did remand one legal issue to the BLM for consideration under U.S. mining law for which the BLM has since issued a determination. BLM confirmed the validity of the Thacker Pass claims, with the exception of two limited waste-rock areas where the Company could pursue additional exploration to validate the claims or establish suitable alternate mining-claim tenure, which the Company intends to pursue in due course.

A subsequent appeal of the U.S. District Court's ruling in the Initial ROD Challenge was filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (“Ninth Circuit”) in February 2023. The plaintiffs’ requests to stay the effect of the ROD pending appeal were denied by both the U.S. District Court and the Ninth Circuit. The appellants’ motions for an injunction pending appeal

were all denied by the courts, and construction activity at Thacker Pass commenced in March 2023. On July 17, 2023, the Ninth Circuit unanimously affirmed the U.S. District Court’s decision.

Separately, a new lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in February 2023 by the Reno Sparks Indian Colony, the Burns Paiute Tribe, and the Summit Lake Paiute Tribe, concerning among other things, adequacy of consultation by the BLM for the issuance of the ROD. In March 2023, the U.S. District Court denied the plaintiffs’ requests for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction. On November 11, 2023, the U.S. District Court dismissed all claims. After the plaintiffs did not seek to amend their complaint, the court issued a final order and judgment dismissing the case in December 2023, and that decision was not appealed.

Permits

Lithium Nevada’s application with the State of Nevada Division of Water Resources (“NDWR”) for the transfer of certain water rights for Phase 1 of Thacker Pass was approved by the State Engineer in February 2023. The State Engineer’s Office issued the final water rights permit to Lithium Nevada on June 30 and July 3, 2023, authorizing Lithium Nevada to use its water production wells. The State Engineer’s decision was appealed by a local ranching company in March 2023. The case is currently pending. The Company has commenced using the water rights for construction activities at the Thacker Pass site consistent with the State Engineer’s authorization.

On February 25, 2022, the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection ("NDEP") issued the final key environmental permits from the state for Thacker Pass. The three approved permits include the Water Pollution Control Permit, Mine Reclamation Permit and Class II Air Quality Operating Permit. An administrative appeal of NDEP's issuance of the Water Pollution Control Permit, which was filed with the Nevada State Environmental Commission in March 2022, was unanimously rejected by the Nevada State Environmental Commission on June 28, 2022. The NDEP approved a Water Pollution Control Permit minor modification in January 2024. Additional permit modifications to reflect design updates are currently pending, and modifications to conform to any other design updates may be pursued as warranted.

Permitting and Reclamation Obligations

Financial assurance of $13.7 million was placed with the agency in February 2023 prior to initiating construction with the remaining amount to be placed as construction activities progress.

Commercial Agreements

On February 16, 2023, Old LAC entered into the Offtake Agreement with GM pursuant to which Old LAC agreed to supply GM with lithium carbonate production from Phase 1 of Thacker Pass. The price within the Offtake Agreement is based on an agreed upon price formula linked to prevailing market prices. For additional details on the GM Transaction, see "Item 10.C - Material Contracts - GM Investment and Offtake."

In 2019, Lithium Nevada entered into a mine design, consulting and mining operations agreement with Sawtooth Mining LLC ("Sawtooth Mining"), a subsidiary of NACCO Industries Inc. and North American Coal. Sawtooth Mining has exclusive responsibility for the design, construction, operation, maintenance, and mining and mine closure services for Thacker Pass, which will supply all of Lithium Nevada's lithium-bearing ore requirements. Sawtooth Mining agreed to provide Lithium Nevada with the following (i) $3.5 million in seven consecutive equal quarterly instalments, with the final payment received in October 2020; and (ii) engineering services related primarily to mine design and permitting. During construction, Sawtooth Mining has agreed to provide initial funding for up to $50 million to procure all mobile mining equipment required for "Phase 1" operations. Excluding these Sawtooth Mining investments, Lithium Nevada bears all costs of mining and mine closure. Lithium Nevada has agreed to either pay a success fee to the mining contractor of $4.7 million upon achieving commercial production or repay the $3.5 million without interest if the final project construction decision is not made by December 31, 2024.

Lithium Nevada entered into master services agreements with EXP US Services Inc. ("EXP"), ITAC Engineers, P.C. ("ITAC"), M3 Engineering and Technology Corp. ("M3") and EDG Consulting Engineers, Inc. ("EDG"). EXP was contracted to develop the design and costing of the acid plant. In 2020, Old LAC entered into master service agreements with M3 and ITAC to work with Sawtooth Mining and Old LAC personnel to advance analysis and engineering of Thacker Pass. Subsequently, in 2021, Old LAC entered into a master services agreement with EDG to act as an owner's engineer and evaluate the quality and coordination of work among the various engineering firms. EDG's team augmented Old LAC's staffing and supported M3 and ITAC to support and guide interfaces between the engineering teams, equipment vendors and validate quality of work against their extensive catalog of project work. In 2023, Lithium Nevada entered into a License Agreement with MECS, Inc. (“MECS”) for the use of certain intellectual property relating to the design, operation and

performance of MECS proprietary equipment relating to the acid plant. The agreement provides for a technology license in relation to the plant based on a one-time fully paid-up license fee (payable in four parts), as well as technical services to be provided by MECS.

In 2022, Aquatech International, LLC ("Aquatech") was contracted through a master services agreement to provide confirmation test work, equipment engineering, equipment manufacture and supply for purification and final product crystallization systems for the LC production plant. Furthermore, and after a long and robust tender process, in November 2022, Old LAC separately awarded an EPCM to Bechtel Corporation, which, in conjunction with the Company and its employees, will be a partner in the design, procurement and execution of Thacker Pass mining and production operations.

Detailed Property Description

For a complete description of Thacker Pass see the Exhibit 15.1 of the Thacker Pass 1300 Report, prepared for the Company by M3 Engineering & Technology Corporation, EXP U.S. Services Inc., Process Engineering LLC, NewFields Mining Design & Technical Services, Wood Canada Limited, Piteau Associates, Sawtooth, a subsidiary of The North American Coal Corporation (NAC), which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of NACCO Industries, Inc. and Industrial TurnAround Corporation, each of which are independent companies and not associates or affiliates of the Company or any associated company of the Company.

The Thacker Pass 1300 Report and the Thacker Pass TR are referred to as the “Reports”. The information contained in this section has been derived from the Reports, is subject to certain assumptions, qualifications and procedures described in the Reports, some of which are not fully described herein, and is qualified in its entirety by the full text of the Reports.

Reference should be made to the full text of the Reports. The Thacker Pass 1300 Report is available for viewing on the Company’s profile at sec.gov. The Thacker Pass TR is available for viewing on the Company’s profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. All capitalized terms used in the disclosure below that are not otherwise defined shall have the meanings ascribed thereto in the Reports, as applicable. For certainty, references to “Lithium Americas Corp.,"“the Company” or “LAC” refer to the Company unless the historical context otherwise requires, in which case references relate to Old LAC (prior to the completion of the Arrangement).

A qualified person, Rene LeBlanc, who is an employee of the Company, has determined that all material assumptions and information in the Reports, including those related to price estimates, remain current as of December 31, 2023.

The following description is taken from the Reports, and also includes certain information updated from the time of the filing of the Reports in accordance with the requirements SK-1300. For developments subsequent to December 31, 2023, please see "Recent Developments" above.

Property Description and Location

Thacker Pass is a development stage property 100% owned by Lithium Nevada Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of LAC.

Thacker Pass is located in Humboldt County in northern Nevada, approximately 100 kilometers (km) north-northwest of Winnemucca, approximately 33 km west-northwest of Orovada, Nevada, and 33 km due south of the Oregon border. It is situated within Township 44 North (T44N), Range 34 East (R34E), and within portions of Sections 1 and 12; T44N, R35E within portions of Sections 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, and 17; and T44N, R36E, within portions of Sections 7, 8, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, and 29, and encompasses approximately 4,236 hectares (ha).

The Thacker Pass area encompasses approximately 4,236 hectares and lies within and is surrounded by public lands administered by the BLM. Thacker Pass encompasses the mineral claims that were formerly referred to as the Stage I area of the Kings Valley Lithium Project and includes lithium (“Li”) claystone mining at the Thacker Pass deposit, and is located in Humboldt County in northern Nevada, approximately 100 km north-northwest of Winnemucca, about 33 km west-northwest of Orovada, Nevada and 33 km due south of the Oregon border. The area is sparsely populated and used primarily for ranching and farming.

Access to Thacker Pass is via the paved US Highway 95 and paved State Route 293; travel north on US-95 from Winnemucca, Nevada, for approximately 70 km to Orovada, Nevada and then travel west-northwest on State Route 293 for 33 km toward Thacker Pass to the Thacker Pass site entrance. Driving time is approximately one hour from Winnemucca, and 3.5 hours from Reno. On-site access is via several gravel and dirt roads established during the exploration phase. The closest international airport is located in Reno, Nevada, approximately 370 km southwest of Thacker Pass. The nearest railroad access is in Winnemucca, Nevada.

Mineral Tenure

Thacker Pass is comprised of a series of unpatented mining claims (the “Thacker Mining Claims”) owned or controlled by LAC. Lithium Nevada is the record owner of the Thacker Mining Claims, and Thacker Pass does not include the development of LAC’s unpatented mineral claims in the Montana Mountains (“Montana Mountains”).

Unpatented mining claims provide the holder with the rights to all locatable minerals on the relevant property, including lithium. The rights include the ability to use the claims for prospecting, mining or processing operations, and uses reasonably incident thereto, along with the right to use so much of the surface as may be necessary for such purposes or for access to adjacent land. This interest in the Thacker Mining Claims remains subject to the paramount title of the U.S. federal government. The holder of an unpatented mining claim maintains a perpetual entitlement to the claim, provided it meets the obligations for maintenance thereof as required by the Mining Act of the United States of America (the Mining Act) and associated regulations.

At this time, the principal obligation imposed on LAC in connection with holding the Thacker Mining Claims is to pay an annual maintenance fee, which represents payment in lieu of the assessment work required under the Mining Act. The annual fee of $165.00 per claim is payable to the BLM, Department of the Interior, Nevada, in addition to a fee of $12.00 per claim paid to the county recorder of the relevant county in Nevada where the unpatented mining claim is located. All obligations for the Thacker Mining Claims in Nevada, including annual fees to the BLM and Humboldt County, have been fulfilled.

The holder of unpatented mining claims maintains the right to extract and sell locatable minerals, which includes lithium, subject to regulatory approvals required under Federal, State and local law. In Nevada, such approvals and permits include approval of a plan of operations by the BLM and environmental approvals.

Royalties

Certain of the Thacker Mining Claims are subject to a 20% royalty payable to Cameco Global Exploration II Ltd. solely in respect of uranium (the “Uranium Royalty”). In addition to the Uranium Royalty and those national, state and local rates described above, Thacker Pass is subject to a gross revenue royalty in the amount of 8% until aggregate royalty payments equaling $22 million have been paid, at which time the royalty will be reduced to 4.0% of gross revenue on all minerals mined, produced or otherwise recovered. The royalty was granted to MF2, LLC (“Orion”), a subsidiary of Orion Mine Fine Finance (Master) Fund I LP (f/k/a RK Mine Finance (Master) Fund II L.P.) in 2013. Orion subsequently transferred 60% of the royalty to Alnitak Holdings, LLC (together with Orion, the “Royalty Holders”). LAC can at any time elect to reduce the rate of the royalty to 1.75% on notice and payment of $22 million to the Royalty Holders.

Permitting and Reclamation Obligations

In 2021, BLM Approved a reclamation cost estimate for the Thacker Pass plan of operations of $47.6 million. Financial assurance in the amount of $13.7 million for the initial work plan was placed with the agency in February 2023 prior to initiating construction with the remaining amount to be placed as construction activities progress.

Thacker Pass is located on public lands administered by the U.S. Department of the Interior, BLM. Construction of Thacker Pass requires permits and approvals from various Federal, State, and local government agencies.

Since 2008, LAC has performed extensive exploration activities at the Thacker Pass site under existing approved agency permits. LAC has all necessary federal and state permits and approvals to conduct mineral exploration activities within active target areas of the Thacker Pass site.

There are no identified issues that would prevent LAC from achieving all permits and authorizations required to commence construction and operation of Thacker Pass, or that may affect access, title, or the right or ability to perform work on the property.

History

In 1975, Chevron USA (“Chevron”) began an exploration program for uranium in the sediments located throughout the McDermitt Caldera (“McDermitt Caldera”), a 40km x 30km geological formation straddling the Oregon-Nevada border, which includes Thacker Pass. Early in Chevron’s program, the USGS (who had been investigating lithium sources) alerted Chevron to the presence of anomalous concentrations of lithium associated with the caldera. Because of this, Chevron added lithium to its assays in 1978 and 1979, began a clay analysis program, and obtained samples for engineering work, though uranium remained the primary focus of exploration. Results supported the high lithium concentrations contained in

clays. From 1980 to 1987, Chevron began a drilling program that focused on lithium targets and conducted extensive metallurgical testing of the clays to determine the viability of lithium extraction.

Prior owners and operators of the property did not conduct any commercial lithium production from Thacker Pass.

Geological Setting, Mineralization and Deposit Types

Geological Setting

Thacker Pass is located within the McDermitt Volcanic Field (the “McDermitt Volcanic Field”), a volcanic complex with four large rhyolitic calderas that formed in the middle Miocene. Volcanic activity in the McDermitt Volcanic Field occurred simultaneously with voluminous outflow of the earliest stages of the approximately 16.6 million years ago (“Ma”) to 15 Ma Columbia River flood basalt lavas. This volcanic activity was associated with impingement of the Yellowstone plume head on the continental crust. Plume head expansion underneath the lithosphere resulted in crustal melting and surficial volcanism along four distinct radial swarms centered around Steens Mountain, Oregon.

The McDermitt Volcanic Field is located within the southeastern-propagating swarm of volcanism from Steens Mountain into north-central Nevada. Thacker Pass is located within the largest and southeastern most caldera of the McDermitt Volcanic Field, the McDermitt Caldera.

Mineralization

The Thacker Pass deposit sits sub-horizontally beneath a thin alluvial cover at Thacker Pass and is partially exposed at the surface. The Thacker Pass deposit contains the targeted multi-phase mining development of Thacker Pass. It lies at relatively low elevations (between 1,500 m and 1,300 m) in caldera lake sediments that have been separated from the topographically higher deposits to the north due to post-caldera resurgence and Basin and Range normal faulting. Exposures of the sedimentary rocks at Thacker Pass are limited to a few drainages and isolated road cuts. Therefore, the stratigraphic sequence in the deposit is primarily derived from core drilling.

The sedimentary section, which has a maximum drilled thickness of about 160 m, consists of alternating layers of claystone and volcanic ash. Basaltic lavas occur intermittently within the sedimentary sequence. The claystone comprises 40% to 90% of the section. In many intervals, the claystone and ash are intimately intermixed. The claystones are variably brown, tan, gray, bluish-gray and black, whereas the ash is generally white or very light gray. Individual claystone-rich units may laterally reach distances of more than 152 m, though unit thickness can vary by as much as 20%. Ash-rich layers are more variable and appear to have some textures that suggest reworking. All units exhibit finely graded bedding and laminar textures that imply a shallow lacustrine (lake) depositional environment.

Surficial oxidation persists to depths of 15 m to 30 m in the moat sedimentary rock. Oxidized claystone is brown, tan, or light greenish-tan and contains iron oxide, whereas ash is white with some orange-brown iron oxide. The transition from oxidized to unoxidized rock occurs over intervals as much as 4.5 m thick.

The moat sedimentary section at Thacker Pass overlies the hard, dense, indurated intra-caldera Tuff of Long Ridge. A zone of weakly to strongly silicified sedimentary rock, the Hot Pond Zone (“HPZ”), occurs at the base of the sedimentary section above the Tuff of Long Ridge in most of the cores retrieved from the Thacker Pass deposit. Both the HPZ and the underlying Tuff of Long Ridge are generally oxidized.

Clay in the Thacker Pass deposit includes two distinctly different mineral types, smectite and illite, based on chemistry and X-ray diffraction (“XRD”) spectra. Clay with XRD spectra that are indicative of smectite (12 – 15 Å basal spacing) occurs at relatively shallow depths in the deposit. Smectite drill intervals contain roughly 2,000 – 4,000 ppm Li. The chemistry and structure of the smectite at the McDermitt Volcanic Field is most similar to hectorite, a subtype of smectite (Na0,3(Mg,Li)3Si4O10(OH)2), though chemically the clay is intermediate between hectorite and two other smectites, stevensite and saponite. Supported hectorite clay occurs elsewhere in the McDermitt Caldera and has been documented by several authors.

The smectite clay concentrates at Thacker Pass have a lithium content similar to hectorite clay concentrate at Hector, California (around 5,700 ppm Li; and higher than the average of all clay concentrates at Clayton Valley, Nevada (approximately 3,500 ppm Li average). The illite clay concentrates at Thacker Pass contain approximately twice the concentration of lithium as the hectorite concentrate from Hector, California and approximately three times the concentration of lithium from clay concentrates in Clayton Valley, Nevada.

Deposit Types

Lithium enrichment (>1,000 ppm Li) in the Thacker Pass deposit and deposits of the Montana Mountains occur throughout the caldera lake sedimentary sequence above the intra-caldera Tuff of Long Ridge. Assay data from the 2017 exploration drilling program indicates that the Lithium-enriched interval is laterally extensive throughout the southern portion of the caldera. The deeper illite-rich portion of the sedimentary sequence contains higher lithium than the shallower, smectite-rich portion. The uplift of the Montana Mountains during both caldera resurgence and Basin and Range faulting led to increased rates of weathering and erosion of a large volume of caldera lake sediments. As a result, much of the sediments in the Montana Mountains have eroded away.

South of the Montana Mountains in the Thacker Pass deposit, caldera lake sediments dip slightly away from the center of resurgence. Because of the lower elevations in Thacker Pass, a smaller volume of the original caldera lake sedimentary package eroded south of the Montana Mountains. As a result, the thickness of the sedimentary package increases with distance from the Montana Mountains. The proposed open-pit mining activity is concentrated just south of the Montana Mountains in Thacker Pass where lithium enrichment is close to the surface with minimal overburden.

Caldera lake sediments of the McDermitt Caldera contain elevated lithium concentrations compared to other sedimentary basins. Although the exact genesis of the lithium enrichment processes is not fully understood, exploration activities have been based on the caldera lake model described above. Exploration results support the proposed model and have advanced the understanding of the geology of the Thacker Pass deposit.

Exploration

Prior to the 2010 drilling campaign, exploration consisted of:

geological mapping to delineate the limits of the McDermitt Caldera moat sedimentary rocks, and

drilling to determine grade and location of mineralization.

Survey work was completed prior to 1980 under Chevron’s exploration program. Most of the Thacker Pass area has been surveyed by airborne gamma ray spectrometry, in search of minerals such as uranium. Anomalously high concentration of lithium was discovered to be associated with the caldera. Lithium became the primary focus of exploration from 2007 onward.

A collar survey was completed by LAC for the 2007-2008 drilling program using a Trimble Global Positioning System (“GPS”). At that time the NAD 83 global reference system was used. Comparing LAC’s survey work with that done by Chevron showed near-identical results for the easting and northings, elevations were off by approximately 3 m and were corrected in order to conform with earlier Chevron work.

The topographic surface of the Thacker Pass area was mapped by aerial photography dated July 6, 2010. This information was obtained by MXS, Inc. for LAC. The flyover resolution was 0.35 m. Ground control was established by Desert-Mountain Surveying, a Nevada licensed land surveyor, using Trimble equipment. Field surveys of drill hole collars, spot-heights and ground-truthing were conducted by Mr. Dave Rowe, MXS, Inc., a Nevada licensed land surveyor, using Trimble equipment.

In addition to drilling in 2017, LAC conducted five seismic survey lines. A seismic test line was completed in July 2017 along a series of historical drill holes to test the survey method’s accuracy and resolution in identifying clay interfaces. The seismic results compared favorably with drill logs, and illustrated that the contact between the basement (intracaldera Tuff of Long Ridge) and the caldera lake sediments (lithium resource host) slightly dips to the east.

Drilling

The Thacker Pass Deposit area has been explored for minerals since the 1970s under three different drilling campaigns. Exploration began with Chevron using rotary and coring drilling methods. LAC performed two subsequent drilling campaigns in 2007-2010 and 2017-2018. LAC’s drilling campaigns consisted of a combination of HQ, PQ, reverse circulation, and sonic coring and drilling methods.

In 2008, LAC drilled five confirmation HQ core drill holes (Li-001 through Li-005) to validate the Chevron drilling results. Five historical Chevron drill holes that are broadly distributed across the Montana Mountains were selected to twin. Results demonstrated that the Chevron assay data was reliable enough to guide further exploration work. These holes were not used in the resource estimation.

LAC conducted exploration drilling in June 2017, drilling 22 widely spaced HQ core holes. Results of this work helped expand the known resource to the northwest of the 2009-2010 drilling, identify a target south of the highway in an area designated the Southwest Basin, and further understand the local geology across Thacker Pass. All anomalous amounts of lithium occurred in clay horizons.

227 holes from the 2007-2010 campaigns and 139 holes from the 2017-2018 campaigns were used in the 2022 Mineral Resource in this report, including results from infill drilling unavailable at the time of the 2018 Mineral Resource estimate and results from holes outside the area modeled in the 2018 Mineral Resource estimate.

The table below lists a summary of holes drilled.


Drill Holes Provided in Current Database for the Thacker Pass Deposit
Drilling Campaign	Number Drilled	Type	Hole IDs in Database	Number used in Resource Model
Chevron	24	Rotary	PC-84-001 through PC-84-012, PC-84-015 through PC-84-026	0
Chevron	1	Core	PC-84-014c	0
LAC 2007-2010	230	HQ Core	WLC-001 through WLC-037, WLC-040 through WLC-232	227
	7	PQ Core	WPQ-001 through WPQ-007	0
	5	HQ Core	Li-001 through WPQ-007	0
	8	RC	TP-001 through TP-008	0
	2	Sonic	WSH-001 through WSH-002	0
LAC 2017-2018	144	HQ Core	LNC-001 through LNC-144	139

Past and modern drilling results show lithium grade ranging from 2,000 ppm to 8,000 ppm lithium over great lateral extents among drill holes. There is a fairly continuous high-grade sub-horizontal clay horizon that exceeds 5,000 ppm lithium across the Thacker Pass area. This horizon averages 1.47 m thick with an average depth of 56 m down hole. The lithium grade for several meters above and below the high-grade horizon typically ranges from 3,000 ppm to 5,000 ppm lithium. The bottom of the deposit is well defined by a hydrothermally altered oxidized ash and sediments that contain less than 500 ppm lithium, and often sub-100 ppm lithium (HPZ). All drill holes except two, are vertical which represent the down hole lithium grades as true-thickness and allows for accurate resource estimation.

Sampling, Analysis and Data Verification

This section describes those activities completed for LAC’s drilling campaigns from 2007-2018.

Sample Preparation

Drilled core was securely placed in core boxes and labelled at site. The boxes of drilled core were then transported to LAC’s secure logging and sampling facility in Orovada, Nevada, where they were lithologically logged, photographed, cut, and sampled by LAC employees and contractors.

Sample security was a priority during the drilling campaigns. Core from the drill site was collected daily and placed in a lockable and secure core logging and sampling facility (steel-clad building) for processing. All logging and sampling activities were conducted in the secured facility. The facilities were locked when no one was present.

The lengths of the assay samples were determined by the geologist based on lithology. From 2007 to 2011 certain lithologies associated with no lithium value were not sampled for assay. These rock types are alluvium, basalt, HPZ and volcanic tuff. All drilled core collected in 2017 and 2018 was sampled for assay. Average assay sample length is 1.60 m but is dependent on lithology changes. The core was cut in half using a diamond blade saw and fresh water. Half the core was placed in a sample bag and the other half remained in the core boxes and stored in LAC’s secure facility in Orovada.

To collect duplicate samples, one half of the core would be cut in half again, and the two quarters would be bagged separately. Each sample was assigned a unique blind sample identification number to ensure security and anonymity. The samples were either picked up by ALS Global of Reno, Nevada (“ALS”) by truck or delivered to ALS in Reno, Nevada by LAC employees.

Once at ALS, the samples were dried at a maximum temperature of 60ºC. The entire sample was then crushed with a jaw crusher to 90% passing a 10 mesh screen. Nominal 250-gram splits were taken for each sample using a riffle splitter. This split is pulverized using a ring mill to 90% passing a 150 mesh screen.

Analysis

ALS was used as the primary assay laboratory for LAC’s Thacker Pass drill program. ALS is an ISO/IEC 17025-2017-certified Quality Systems Laboratory. ALS participates in the Society of Mineral Analysts round-robin testing, and is an independent laboratory without affiliation to LAC.

ALS used their standard ME-MS61 analytical package for testing of all of LAC’s samples collected. This provides analytical results for 48 elements, including lithium. The method used a standard four-acid digestion followed by an atomic emission plasma spectroscopy (“ICP-AES”) analysis to ensure that elevated metal concentrations would not interfere with a conventional inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy (“ICP-MS”) analysis. Certified analytical results were reported on the ICP-MS determinations.

Quality Control Measures and Data Verification Procedures

In 2010-2011, for every 34 half core samples, LAC randomly inserted two standard samples (one 3,378 ppm Li grade and 4,230 ppm Li grade), one duplicate sample, and one blank sample. The 2017-2018 quality program was slightly modified to include a random blank or standard sample within every 30.48 m interval and taking a duplicate split of the core (¼ core) every 30.48 m.

The total number of blank, duplicate, and standard samples analyzed by the laboratory during LAC’s drilling campaign in Thacker Pass from the 2010-2011 drilling campaign was 9.5% of the total samples assayed. LAC’s 2017-2018 drilling campaign averaged 11.1% quality control samples out of the total samples assayed. Assaying for all drilling averaged 10.1% check samples. This does not include ALS internal check and duplicate samples.

ALS also completed their internal QA/QC program (“QA/QC”) which included blanks, standards and duplicates throughout LAC’s exploration programs for lithium and deleterious elements including aluminum, calcium, cesium, iron, potassium, magnesium, sodium and rubidium. The standards used by ALS and the ALS QA/QC programs have been reviewed by the “qualified person” (“QP”) and were utilized in the QA/QC review.

The 2010 sampling program was initially seeing a 6% failure rate of the QA/QC samples where 17% of the 4,230 Li standards were returning lithium grades exceeding three standard deviations of their tested median grade. ALS began using a new higher-grade lithium standard to improve the calibration of their inductively coupled plasma spectrometer. Following the improved calibration process, LAC selected the 16 highest lithium values from drill holes WLC-001 through WLC-037 and WLC-040 through WLC-200 to be re-assayed. The samples were sent to both ALS and Activation Laboratories (“ActLabs”) in Ancaster, Ontario, Canada for lithium assays. The re-assay grade for ALS and ActLabs was 5% and 3% lower than the original assay, respectively. It was concluded that the overall deposit estimate may be lower by at most 2% to 3%. For further assurance, ActLabs was chosen to run lithium assays on 112 random duplicate pulps generated by ALS in April 2011. The results were within 3% of ALS certified lithium grade.

The 2017-2018 sampling programs had consistent quality control results for the duration of the campaigns. Duplicate samples returned with an R2 value of 0.9827, indicating a high-level of precision in the sampling and laboratory techniques and supporting the validity of QA/QC protocols. The duplicate grades extend from 13 ppm lithium to 7,500 ppm lithium. In addition, the blank and standards sample quality programs indicated that the accuracy and precision of the analytical process provides results that can be relied on for resource estimation.

Data Verification

Excel formatted electronic files containing lithological descriptions, sample assays, hole collar information, and downhole surveys were provided to Sawtooth Mining, LLC (“Sawtooth Mining”) by LAC for the purpose of generating a geologic resource block model. Certified laboratory certificates of assays were provided in PDF as well as csv formatted files for verification of the sample assays database. Sample names, certificate identifications, and run identifications were cross referenced with the laboratory certificates and sample assay datasheet for spot checking and verification of data by the QP.

Geologic logs were consolidated from paper archives and scanned PDFs on LAC’s network drives. In 2016, each drill log was transcribed into a spreadsheet using the smallest lithologic interval identified in the log to create the highest resolution

dataset possible. Subsequent geologic loggings of drill cores were entered directly into either an Access database or Excel spreadsheets. The data was then uploaded into LAC’s Hexagon Mining Drill Hole Manager database.

Geologic logs, Access databases, and Excel spreadsheets were provided to Sawtooth Mining for cross validation with the excel lithological description file. Spot checks between excel lithological description file were performed against the source data and no inconsistencies were found with the geologic unit descriptions. Ash percentages were checked in the lithological descriptions and a minor number of discrepancies were found in the ash descriptions. It was determined that less than 0.7% of the ash data contained discrepancies in the lithological description. The QP determined that this 0.7% database error rate was within acceptable limits but noted that it should be addressed in the future.

The QP located and resurveyed 18 drill holes using a hand-held GPS unit to verify the coordinates and elevations of the drill hole survey database. The surveyed holes matched the coordinates and elevation of the hole survey provided by LAC closely where the actual drill holes could be found.

The QP completed spot checks of the Excel assays datasheet used in the creation of the geologic block model by cross-referencing the assay data with the certified laboratory certificate of assays. Only HQ core holes were reviewed since HQ cores were the only holes used for the estimation of resources. No data anomalies were discovered during this check.

The QP collected samples during LAC’s 2022 auger bulk sampling program for independent verification of the lithium clay/ash grades. The samples were delivered to ALS in Reno, NV for processing and analysis. Distribution of the lithium grades from the independent verification shows distribution of grades similar to what has been reported from the drill core assays.

The shallow and massive nature of the Thacker Pass deposit makes it amenable to open-pit mining methods. Per uniaxial compression strength studies done by WorleyParsons (Mar. 2018) and AMEC (May 2011), it was determined that mining of the ore clay body can be done without any drilling and blasting. Additionally, LAC was able to excavate a test pit without any drilling and blasting. Only the basalt waste material will require blasting. The mining method assumes hydraulic excavators loading a fleet of end dump trucks.

Mineral Processing and Metallurgical Testing

Extensive metallurgical and process development testing has been performed both internally at the Company’s LiTDC and externally with both vendors and contract commercial research organizations. The main objective was to develop a viable and robust process flowsheet to produce battery grade lithium chemicals.

Ore Collection for Metallurgical Testing

The ore samples used for metallurgical testing were collected from the proposed pit at the Thacker Pass deposit. Two sampling campaigns were conducted using an auger drill, one in August 2018 and another in October 2019, collecting approximately 80 tonne (metric) of sample in bulk bags per campaign. Bulk sample holes were selected to target both high and low lithium contents, different clay types, and the life of mine mineralogy of both clay types.

The holes were drilled with a 32-inch bucket auger bit. Once the bucket was full, the sample was transferred to a bulk bag and labeled. Every bulk bag holds roughly 1.5 to 2 ft of material depth in each hole; this is equivalent to approximately 0.9 t of material.

The samples spatially represent the mineralized deposit. The location of the sampling was selected to collect samples that are representative of the various types and styles of mineralization of the whole deposit, namely both the upper and lower depths. Half the selected hole locations were in undisturbed upper smectite horizons, and half the holes in uplifted faulted blocks that represent deeper illite clay horizons.

Metallurgical Test Work – Beneficiation

Samples of both clay types, hard ash (intermittent layers in the clay deposit) and limestone from local sources were submitted for materials characterization testing by Hazen and FLSmidth, Inc. Specifically, Bond ball mill work index, Bond abrasion index, Bond impact work index (“CWi”), and unconfined compressive strength were measured.

The clay samples had very low work indices, and both are considered “soft” within the Hardness/Resistance to breakage ranges (CWi <10). The impact energy was also low. The hard ash and limestone samples are also considered as “soft” materials per the Bond impact work index values.

Results from this analysis were used to appropriately design and size the feeder breakers and mineral sizers to reduce run-of-mine (“ROM”) material down to the target size to feed downstream unit operations.

Lithium is highly concentrated in the clay fraction, while gangue material has minimal lithium value. This is confirmed by analysis of ore samples via Sensitive High Resolution Ion Microprobe, where lithium concentration is as high as 1.81 wt.% in the clay regions located in the boundaries of detrital grains.

Attrition scrubbing (a form of high intensity slurry mixing) has proven to be an effective technique to liberate lithium bearing clay from gangue material (detrital grains). The scrubber imparts enough energy to disperse clays to fine particles while leaving harder gangue minerals in the larger size fractions.

Attrition scrubbing tests at LAC’s LiTDC were done on illite, smectite and mixtures thereof at various slurry densities and residence times. The discharge slurries were wet screened and assayed by size fraction to quantify mass and elemental distribution. Test results showed that optimum scrubbing conditions were achieved at 30% solids slurry density and 10 minutes residence time. At higher percent solids the slurry becomes too viscous for efficient scrubbing, and longer residence times result in overgrinding of coarse gangue. Depending on the clay blend, 88-96% of the lithium was located in particles smaller than 38 micrometer (“µm”) after scrubbing, while 66-79% of the total mass was in the same size fraction. This demonstrates that attrition scrubbing can be effective to separate lithium-containing clays from coarse gangue material.

In the process flow sheet, conventional cyclones will be utilized to achieve approximately 75 µm separation from the attrition scrubbing product. The cyclone overflow containing the major fraction of the minus 75 µm material will be directed to a thickener. The underflow from the cyclone, containing residual fines and coarse gangue will be processed through a hydraulic classifier. The hydraulic classifier overflow will be directed to the thickening stage and the underflow will be dewatered, then sent to a coarse gangue stockpile for use in mine reclamation.

Based on mine plan optimization to maximize recoverable lithium, the resultant blend to feed the plant averages 59% illite and ranges between 30 to 70%, with the remaining amount as smectite. Approximately 4% of lithium and 28% of the total mass at or below 75 µm should report to the hydraulic classifier underflow stream as coarse gangue. It is assumed that the mass of material reporting to coarse gangue will be more closely aligned with the overall pit ash content, which is approximately 34%. For lithium, it is assumed that 92% of the lithium contained in the ROM material will report to the minus 75 μm overflow streams.

Solid Liquid Separation Circuit

After classification two stages of solid liquid separation are performed to dewater the clay and increase percent solids feed to leach. Thickening followed by decanter centrifuging is expected to achieve a final product of 55% solids (by weight) with a particle size distribution target of 80% passing 75 microns.

Leaching and Neutralization

The concentrate product from the classification circuit is directed to the leach circuit. Lithium contained in clay rich leach feed is dissolved with sulfuric acid in agitated leach tanks. LAC has performed extensive leach testing on material collected from various locations throughout the deposit. Over 100 large leach batch tests were performed in 0.38 m3 tanks. Approximately 0.36 t of slurry were processed per batch. Different clay compositions and sulfuric acid doses were tested to determine the lithium leach extraction, kinetics, and sulfuric acid requirement to maximize lithium extraction. The lithium leach extraction data for all batches was selected by lithium grade (≥2,500 ppm) after removal of coarse gangue and design acid dose.

After slurry is leached, residual acid is neutralized to raise the pH to precipitate most of the aluminum and iron in solution. LAC plans to obtain limestone from nearby sources.

Large batch neutralization tests have also been performed using both CaCO3 and recycled magnesium precipitate (magnesium hydroxide/calcium sulfate solids), as currently designed in the flow sheet. In these tests, pulverized limestone was added to a target pH ~3.5, then a slurry containing magnesium precipitation solids was added to a target pH of ~7. This simulates the two-stage neutralization circuit. It has been confirmed over multiple batches that the magnesium solids are effective as a neutralization reagent and capable of bringing the final slurry pH to a target range of 6-7. Testing has confirmed that at the end of neutralization, aluminum and iron are almost completely removed.

Magnesium and Calcium Removal

Magnesium is removed in a primary stage of crystallizers designed to crystallize as much magnesium as possible in the form of hydrated magnesium sulfate (MgSO4*xH2O) salts where x varies with temperature. A critical aspect of magnesium sulfate crystallization is to avoid lithium losses to the salts, because at a threshold concentration of lithium and potassium in solution, lithium can form a double salt with potassium. Therefore, understanding the LiKSO4 phase boundary limit is essential to operate the magnesium crystallizers effectively. LAC, with the assistance of a research partner, has mapped this boundary using in-situ real time monitoring tools during crystallization of brine solutions generated at the LiTDC. LAC now has a custom phase diagram specific to Thacker Pass brines.

In addition to the fundamental studies in progress, continuous bench and pilot scale test work on neutralized brine solution produced by LAC has been performed. The objective of these scoping studies was to verify the maximum amount of magnesium that can be removed without lithium losses. At optimum conditions, crystallization was able to remove on average 79% of the incoming magnesium without lithium precipitation. This has been verified by other independent testing. Crystals were relatively large and easy to wash/dewater and remove via centrifugation.

The calcium removal step takes place in reactor clarifiers, where soda ash (Na2CO3) is added to form a solid calcium carbonate (CaCO3) precipitate. Test work was performed to determine soda ash dose and clarifier sizing (Westech, 2021a). The resultant solution had less than 20 mg/L of Ca remaining.

Lithium Carbonate Production

The brine feeding the lithium carbonate (Li2CO3) purification circuit primarily contains lithium, sodium, and potassium sulfate. The objective is to produce high quality battery grade lithium carbonate.

The Li2CO3 purification circuit is comprised of three stages: primary Li2CO3 crystallization, bicarbonation, and secondary Li2CO3 crystallization. Each stage has been tested (Veolia, 2020). In the 1st stage, soda ash (Na2CO3) is added to the brine in stoichiometric excess to precipitate Li2CO3 and form crystals. The crystals collected in the first stage were analyzed to be 95.8 wt% Li2CO3. A target of ≥99.5 wt% for battery grade indicated that a second stage purification is necessary to remove impurities.

The Li2CO3 crystals collected from the first stage were re-slurried with water and then transferred to a reactor where carbon dioxide (CO2) gas was continuously metered at controlled temperature and pressure. This reaction converts Li2CO3 to highly soluble lithium bicarbonate (LiHCO3). Solid impurities were removed in a filtration step.

The filtered brine was then fed to a second stage reactor, where it was heated to thermally degas CO2 and precipitate Li2CO3. After separating and washing the crystals, a product with >99.5 wt.% was obtained. The crystals were of sufficient size for efficient solids/liquid separation with little to no agglomerates present. The bicarbonate filtration step is critical to keep contaminants within battery product specification.

To further validate the process design, pilot Li2CO3 purification testing was performed by Aquatech International on brine generated from Thacker Pass clay. The test program was designed to simulate the commercial circuit and included all stages of purification and all primary recycle streams. They demonstrated the ability to produce lithium carbonate at both the purity (>99.5 wt%) and recovery (>96.0%) as defined in the basis of design. Other key design criteria, equilibrium concentrations, reagent consumptions, and power demand were also verified throughout the test campaign.

Beneficiation and Leaching Variability Study

The primary objective of the leach variability study was to confirm that materials from depth in the Thacker Pass deposit provide a similar metallurgical response to the beneficiation and leach processes. Composite samples representative of the first five years of production were procured for bench scale testing.

The beneficiation (attrition/scrubbing and classification) process was simulated in the laboratory to generate leach feed slurry from each composite representing various years of production. The coarse gangue removed (+75 microns) was quantified and lithium losses were evaluated. Representative test charges of leach feed (-75 microns) were generated and leached using standard leach parameters previously defined for Thacker Pass. The results from this study were used to verify the leach extraction model accuracy.

Samples were collected to geospatially represent the first five years of mine life. Twenty-one composite samples were prepared at a 70/30 illite to smectite ratio to match the mine plan. The samples were then slurried at 40% solids, attrition scrubbed for 10 minutes, and wet screened at 75-micron to remove coarse gangue. The resulting minus 75-micron slurry

was then adjusted to match the design leach feed slurry density (34% solids). Removal of coarse gangue resulted in upgrading of the leach feed. Leach feed slurry lithium concentration ranged from 4,246 ppm to 6,974 ppm and magnesium from 5.7% to 8.9%. Leach testing was performed in both open cycle and locked cycle to evaluate potential hindering of leaching efficiency by elevated concentrations of dissolved salts. To simulate the level of saturation in the leach process, salts were added to the leach feed (based on the Aspen material balance) prior to leaching. The level of saturation in the leach process did not appear to impact the level of lithium extraction obtained in the composite samples evaluated.

The data from the leach variability study was then added to the 37 pilot plant sample dataset used for the empirical correlation. Two samples from the original dataset were statistically identified as outliers owing to extremely high aluminum. The regression was then repeated and resulted in a more accurate model with only 1% less extraction when compared with the leach variability samples. The results from this study demonstrate that the lithium extraction is independent of depth in the deposit.

Metallurgical Test Work Conclusions

Since 2017, LAC has performed extensive metallurgical and process development testing, both internally and externally. Based on results of this test work, the following was established:

•

Attrition/Scrubbing 10-minute retention time at 30-40% solids density is suitable for separating lithium bearing clay from coarse gangue. A two-stage circuit (mild + intense) was used for design purposes.

•

A separation size of 75 microns is suitable to minimize lithium losses reporting to rejected coarse gangue mineralization.

An estimated 8% lithium loss to coarse gangue is assumed.

Approximately 34% of ROM material mass is rejected as coarse gangue (average life of mine, based on ash content).

•

Two stages of solid - liquid separation (thickener and centrifuge decanter) are required to achieve desired solids density for generation of upgraded slurry for leaching. The classification circuit thickener underflow terminal density is estimated at 20-25%. The centrifuge paste solids density is estimated in a 55% range.

•

Sulfuric acid dosage required to achieve an acceptable level of leach extraction is estimated at 0.49 t of sulfuric acid per tonne of leach feed.

•

The actual dosage evaluated in the laboratory was 490 kg acid/tonne solids.

•

The expected lithium leach extraction is estimated to be in an 85 to 87% range over the life of mine. This level of leach extraction is supported by the bench scale metallurgical data developed in the variability study.

•

Limestone slurry and magnesium precipitation solids proved to be suitable for pH adjustment in the neutralization circuit.

•

A seven-stage counter current decantation (“CCD”) and filtration circuit was evaluated. The seven stage CCD coupled with pressure filtration step without cake washing stage provides an acceptable wash efficiency and will minimize lithium loss to the neutralized leached residue.

•

Magnesium sulfate (MgSO4) crystallization can effectively remove on average 79% of magnesium.

•

Lithium carbonate (Li2CO3) purification requires three stages to ensure that a battery quality lithium carbonate will be produced.

Mineral Resource and Mineral Reserve Estimates

Mineral Resource Estimates

The unpatented mining claims owned by LAC in the Montana Mountains are not part of Thacker Pass.

Only HQ core samples subject to LAC’s QA/QC programs and assayed by ALS Reno, Nevada, were used to estimate the resource.

366 drill holes were used in development of the resource block model. All drill holes used for the grade model except WLC-058 are essentially vertical (88.8 degrees to 90 degrees). Regular downhole gyro surveys were conducted to verify this. All mineralization thicknesses recorded are treated as true thicknesses.

All drill holes used for grade estimation were standard HQ core, drilled using standard techniques by Marcus & Marcus Exploration Inc., now known as Timberline Drilling Inc. Core is stored at a secure logging facility while being processed, then locked in CONEX containers or a warehouse after sampling was completed.

The statement of Mineral Resources for Thacker Pass as of December 31, 2023 are presented in the table below. Mineral Resources are reported exclusive of Mineral Reserves in accordance with S-K 1300.

Mineral Resources Estimate as of December 31, 2023 As Reported under S-K 1300


Category	Tonnage (Mt)	Average Li (ppm)	Lithium Carbonate Equivalent (Mt)	Metallurgical Recovery (%)
Measured	325.2	1,990	3.4	73.5
Indicated	895.2	1,820	8.7	73.5
Measured & Indicated	1,220.4	1,860	12.1	73.5
Inferred	297.2	1,870	3.0	73.5

Notes:

Mineral Resources that are not Mineral Reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability, and there is no certainty that all or any part of such Mineral Resources will be converted into Mineral Reserves.

Mineral Resources are in-situ and exclusive of 217.3 million metric tonnes (Mt) of Mineral Reserves.

Mineral Resources are reported using an economic break-even formula: "Operating Cost per Resource Tonne"/"Price per Recovered Tonne Lithium" * 10^6 = ppm Li Cutoff. "Operating Cost per Resource Tonne" = $88.50, "Price per Recovered Tonne Lithium" is estimated: ("Lithium Carbonate Equivalent (LCE) Price" * 5.323 *(1 - "Royalties") * "Recovery". Variables are "LCE Price" = $22,000/tonne Li2CO3, "Royalties" = 1.75% and "Metallurgical Recovery" = 73.5%. Price source: Wood Mackenzie Q2 FY2022 Long term forecast report as referenced in section 19.4 of the Thacker Pass 1300 Report.

Resources presented at a cutoff grade of 1,047 ppm Li.

A resource economical pit shell has been derived from performing a pit optimization estimation using Vulcan software.

The conversion factor for lithium to LCE is 5.323.

Applied density for the mineralization is 1.79 t/m3 (Section 8.4 of the Thacker Pass 1300 Report).

Measured Mineral Resources are in blocks estimated using at least six drill holes and eighteen samples within a 262 m search radius in the horizontal plane and 5 m in the vertical direction; Indicated Mineral Resources are in blocks estimated using at least two drill holes and six to eighteen samples within a 483 m search radius in the horizontal plane and 5 m in the vertical direction; and Inferred Mineral Resources are blocks estimated with at least two drill holes and three to six samples within a search radius of 722 m in the horizontal plane and 5 m in the vertical plane.

10.

Tonnages and grades have been rounded to accuracy levels deemed appropriate by the qualified person. Summation errors due to rounding may exist.

The statement of Mineral Resources for Thacker Pass with an effective date of November 2, 2022 and current as of December 31, 2023.

Potential risk factors that could affect the Mineral Resource estimates include but are not limited to large changes in the market pricing, commodity price assumptions, material density factor assumptions, future geotechnical evaluations, metallurgical recovery assumptions, mining and processing cost assumptions, and other cost estimates could affect the pit optimization parameters and therefore the cut-off grades and Mineral Resource estimates.

Mineral Reserve Estimates

This section contains forward-looking information related to the Mineral Reserves estimates for the Thacker Pass deposit. The material factors that could cause actual results to differ from the conclusions, estimates, designs, forecasts or projections include geological modeling, grade interpolations, lithium price estimates, mining cost estimates, and final pit shell limits such as more detailed exploration drilling or final pit slope angle. The reference point at which the Mineral Reserves are defined is at the point where the ore is delivered to the run-of-mine feeder. Reductions attributed to plant losses have not been included in the Mineral Reserve estimate.

The Mineral Reserve estimate relies on the resource block model prepared by the QP.

Pit Optimization

The EIS pit shell (“EIS”) was developed on the Li2CO3 pricing of $5,400/t and cost values from the PFS report. The cost and pricing used are shown in the table below. The pit shell was developed using Vulcan’s Pit Optimization and Automated Pit Developer. The EIS pit area was limited by a few physical boundaries, including:

•

The west boundary was limited by the Thacker Pass Creek.

•

A limit line was set to keep the pit shell from breaking into the water shed.

•

The northern boundary was predominately limited by the Montana Mountains.

•

The east and south boundaries were limited by mine facilities, waste facilities, process plant, and SR 293.


Pit Optimizer Parameters
Parameter	Unit	Value
Li2CO3	US$/t	5,400
Ore Processing Cost	US$/t ROM	55.00
Process Recovery	%	84
Mining Cost for Ore	US$/t	2.80
Mining Recovery Factor	%	95

Note:

Cost estimates and Lithium price are as of 2018

Mineral Reserves and Cut-off Grade

The estimate of Mineral Reserves is based on mining within an approved permitted pit shell developed in 2019 for the Environmental Impact Statement (“EIS”), a 40-year mine life with a total plant leach ore feed of 154.2 million dry tonnes and a cut-off grade of 1.533 kilograms of lithium recovered per run-of-mine tonne. The leach ore feed is the ROM dry tonnes less the ash tonnes.

The cut-off grade was estimated for each block in the model as discussed in the section below. The blocks were sorted based on the cut-off grade from high to low and then the leach ore tonnes were added together until the total leach ore feed tonnes were met. These blocks were labeled as mine ore and were used in the mine scheduler.

Waste

Waste consists of various types of material: basalt, alluvium and clay that does not meet the ore definition or the cut-off grade described above.

Stripping Ratio

The resulting stripping ratio of the designed pit is 1.51 tonnes of waste rock with ore loss and rehandle to 1 tonne of recovered ore, on a wet tonnage basis. The in-place stripping ratio is 1.34 tonnes in situ waste to 1 tonne of in situ ore.


Mineral Reserves Estimate
Category	Tonnage (Mt)	Average Li (ppm)	Lithium Carbonate Equivalent (Mt)
Proven	192.9	3,180	3.3
Probable	24.4	3,010	0.4
Proven and Probable	217.3	3,160	3.7

Note:

The mineral reserve estimate was derived from the Reports with an effective date of November 2, 2022 with respect to the Thacker Pass TR and an effective date of December 31, 2022 with respect to the Thacker Pass 1300 Report. A qualified person, Rene LeBlanc, who is an employee of the Company, has determined that mineral reserve and resource estimates and all material assumptions and information in the Reports, including those related to price estimates, remain current as of December 31, 2023.

The Qualified Person who supervised the preparation of and approved disclosure for the estimate is Kevin Bahe, P.E., SME-RM.

Mineral Reserves have been converted from Measured and Indicated Mineral Resources within the Thacker Pass 1300 Report and have demonstrated economic viability.

Reserves presented at an 85% maximum ash content and a cut-off grade of 1.533 kg of lithium extracted per tonne run of mine feed. Additionally, a 95% mining recovery factor is applied. A dilution percentage was not applied. A sales price of $5,400 US$/t of Li2CO3 was utilized in the pit optimization resulting in the generation of the reserve pit shell in 2019. Overall slope of 27 degrees was applied. For bedrock material pit slope was set at 47 degrees. Mining and processing cost of $57.80 per tonne of ROM feed, a processing recovery factor of 84%, and royalty cost of 1.75% were addition inputs into the pit optimization.

A LOM plan was developed based on equipment selection, equipment rates, labor rates, and plant feed and reagent parameters. All Mineral Reserves are within the LOM plan. The LOM plan is the basis for the economic assessment within the Technical Report, which is used to show economic viability of the Mineral Reserves.

Applied density for the ore is 1.79 t/m3.

Lithium Carbonate Equivalent is based on in-situ LCE tonnes with 95% recovery factor.

Tonnages and grades have been rounded to accuracy levels deemed appropriate by the QP. Summation errors due to rounding may exist.

The reference point at which the Mineral Reserves are defined is at the point where the ore is delivered to the run-of-mine feeder.

10.

A sales price of $5,400 US$/t of Li2CO3 for 40-years was utilized in the pit optimization.

The Mineral Reserves estimate is based on current knowledge, engineering constraints and permit status. Large changes in the market pricing, commodity price assumptions, material density factor assumptions, future geotechnical evaluations, cost estimates or metallurgical recovery could affect the pit optimization parameters and therefore the cut-off grades and estimates of Mineral Reserves.

Mining Operations

The shallow and massive nature of the deposit makes it amenable to open-pit mining methods. The mining method assumes hydraulic excavators loading a fleet of end dump trucks. This truck/excavator fleet will develop several offset benches to maintain geotechnically stable highwall slopes. These benches will also enable the mine to have multiple grades of ore exposed at any given time, allowing flexibility to deliver and blend ore as needed.

Pit Design

A highwall slope-stability study was completed by Barr Engineering Co. (“BARR”) in December 2019. BARR conducted geotechnical drilling, testing, and analysis to assess the geology and ground conditions. Core samples were obtained to determine material characteristics and strength properties. A minimum factor-of-safety value of 1.20 is generally acceptable for active open pit walls. However, given the possibility of long-term exposure of pit slopes in clay geological formations, a value of 1.30 was incorporated into the design for intermediate and overall slope stability.

The geotechnical analysis indicates that the geology is generally uniform across the Thacker Pass site. The competence of the in-situ material in conjunction with the use of the proposed highwall angles meets or exceeds the minimum recommended factor-of-safety values for intermediate and overall slope configurations.

A bench width of 50 m and a height of 5 m was chosen. This face height is amenable to efficient loading operations while still shallow enough to allow for the removal of thicker barren horizons within the cut to minimize dilution. Double benching and increasing the bench height to 10 m before implementing offsets, will be used to increase mining depths while maintaining the inter-ramp slope requirements.

Mine Plan

The initial cut location is at the mouth of the valley entering the west area. The haul road will enter the initial cut area at the 1,540 m level. From the initial cut, mining advancement prioritized five objectives: (1) recover all ore, (2) deliver a blend of illite and smectite ore to the beneficiation circuit, (3) provide higher grade ore early in the Thacker Pass project life, (4) facilitate placement of waste into the previously mined pit area as soon as feasible, and (5) mine the entirety of the permitted

pit area. This required initial pit advancement to first expose the west and south walls. Mining will then advance north toward the Montana Mountains and finally finish to the east.

Mining Operations

Waste removal and ore removal will be done using two hydraulic excavators and a fleet of end dump trucks. The end dump truck fleet will haul the ore to the ROM stockpile and the waste will be hauled either to the West Waste Rock Storage Facility or placed in previously mined sections of the pit. The end dump truck fleet will also be used to haul coarse gangue and attrition scrubber reject materials.

The annual production rate for the 40-year mine is based on varying plant feed leach ore rates caused by the availability of sulfuric acid for the leaching process. Phase I (years 1-3) has an annual feed rate of 1.7 million dry tonnes of ore to leach and Phase 2 (years 4-40) has 4.0 million dry tonnes of ore to leach.

Due to the sequence of mining, the majority of in-pit ramps will be temporary. Additionally, cross-pit ramping will be utilized from load face to the in-pit waste dump as well as access to the main haul road. The cross-pit ramps will be dumped in using waste material. As the pit advances, portions of the in-pit ramp will be excavated to allow mining access to the lower mining faces. Removal of portions of the in-pit ramp will be considered rehandle and is accounted for in the total waste removed.

Equipment Selection

Equipment selection was based on the annual quantities of material required to be mined. After reviewing various options, 91-tonne class end dump trucks loaded by two 18-tonne class hydraulic excavators in five passes was selected. The excavators will be used to load two types of ore as well as the waste material.

Drilling and Blasting

The ability to mine without blasting was determined in the Thacker Pass 1300 Report. The range of uniaxial compressive strength test results is within the cutting range of the excavator.

Based on reported test results, exploratory drill logs, and actual excavation of a test pit, only the basalt is expected to require blasting. However, there are bands of hard ash which may require ripping with a dozer prior to loading. The remaining waste and ore can be free dug with the hydraulic excavators. Due to the infrequency of blasting, a third-party contractor will be used for the drilling and blasting on an as needed basis.

Processing and Recovery Options

The Mineral Reserves are comprised of two main types of lithium bearing clay, smectite and illite, with volcanic ash and other gangue minerals mixed throughout. Both types of clay will be processed simultaneously, with a plant feed blend maintained from two separate stockpiles for each clay type. The ore will be upgraded using a wet attrition scrubbing process followed by two classification stages to remove coarse material with low lithium content, referred to as coarse gangue. The

upgraded ore slurry will be processed in a leach circuit using sulfuric acid to extract the lithium from the lithium-bearing clay. The lithium-bearing solution will then be purified primarily by using crystallizers and precipitation reagents to produce battery grade lithium carbonate. Leach residue will be washed, filtered, and stacked in a tailing facility.

Thacker Pass will be constructed in two phases. Lithium carbonate production during Phase 1 is designed for a nominal 40,000 t per annum capacity while Phase 2 will double design capacity to a nominal 80,000 t per annum. The process plant will operate 24 hours/day, 365 days/year with an overall availability of 92% and a mine life of 40 years. The total amount of material processed in the mine plan is 217.3 Mt (dry). The most tonnes planned for a single year are 6.7 Mt (dry) in Year 8.

The recovery process consists of the following primary circuits:

•

Beneficiation

Comminution

Attrition Scrubbing

Classification

Solid-Liquid Separation (Thickening and Dewatering)

•

Leaching

•

Neutralization

•

Counter Current Decantation and Filtration

•

Magnesium, Calcium and Boron Removal

•

Lithium Carbonate (Li2CO3) production

1st Stage Lithium Carbonate Crystallization

Bicarbonation

2nd Stage Lithium Carbonate Crystallization

Sodium Sulfate and Potassium Sulfate Crystallization (ZLD)

In beneficiation, ROM ore is crushed then mixed with water and fed to unit operations designed to liberate lithium bearing clay from gangue material. The clay is separated from coarse gangue in classification, with coarse gangue being stockpiled and eventually used as pit backfill material. The clay fines are then sent to the first dewatering (thickening) stage. These circuits are located close to the pit. The slurry is then pumped downgradient to a second stage of dewatering (decanter centrifuging). The resulting slurry is fed to the processing plant.

The dewatered slurry is mixed with sulfuric acid (H2SO4) from the acid plant, leaching lithium and other constituents into solution. Acid availability determines leach feed rates, which in turn determines ore mining rates. The free acid contained in the resultant leached residue is neutralized with both a slurry of ground limestone and a magnesium hydroxide slurry from the magnesium precipitation circuit. The neutralized slurry is sent to a CCD circuit to recover residual lithium bearing solution and then fed to recessed chamber filter presses. The filter cake is then conveyed to the clay tailings filter stack (“CTFS”) as waste material for stacking.

The filtrate is sent to magnesium and calcium removal circuits where first the bulk of the magnesium is crystallized as MgSO4*xH2O salts, removed via centrifugation, and conveyed to the CTFS. Any remaining magnesium in the brine is then precipitated with milk-of-lime and separated by recessed chamber membrane filter presses. The precipitated solids are repulped and recycled back to neutralization (as stated above), eventually leaving the process with neutralized filter cake. The calcium in the liquor is removed via soda ash addition, and an ion exchange polishing step brings the divalent cation concentration to very low levels. This lithium-bearing brine is fed to the Li2CO3 production circuit where soda ash is used to precipitate lithium carbonate. A bicarbonation step is used to further remove impurities from the Li2CO3 crystals.

The final Li2CO3 crystal product is separated via centrifugation then sent to drying, micronization, cooling, dry vibrating magnetic filtration and packaging. Mother liquor from the Li2CO3 crystallizers is sent to the Zero Liquid Discharge (“ZLD”) crystallizer to remove Na and K as sulfate salts. The salts are sent to the CTFS while lithium remaining in the concentrate is recycled back to the front of the Li2CO3 circuit and recovered.

Process design criteria were developed by LAC’s process engineering group based on in-house and vendor test results that were incorporated into the process modelling software Aspen Plus® to generate a steady-state material and energy

balance. This data and criteria below were used as nominal values for equipment design/sizing. The design basis for the beneficiation facility is to process an average ROM throughput rate during Phase 1 of about 3.3 M dry tonnes per year equivalent to about 9,015 dry tonnes per day (t/d) of feed (including a 99% plant availability). Throughput from the mine to the crushing plant is targeted based on an average rejection rate of 34% of the ROM material based on low lithium content in coarse material. With approximately 6,436 dry t/d feed rate (including a 92% plant availability) to the leach plant and recoveries for Thacker Pass, the design basis results in an estimated production rate of approximately 110 t/d (40,187 t/a) of battery grade Li2CO3.

Infrastructure, Permitting and Compliance Activities

Infrastructure and Logistics

Thacker Pass is planned to be constructed in two phases. Phase 1 will consist of a single sulfuric acid plant with a nominal production rate of 3,000 tonnes per day sulfuric acid. Phase 2 will begin three years later with the addition of a second sulfuric acid plant with an additional nominal production rate of 3,000 t/d. Mined material and tailings will be moved by conveyors and trucks.

Process Plant General Arrangement

A portion of the process facilities encompassing mineral beneficiation and classification is located due east of the Mine Service Area near the ore body. This area includes the ROM pad, feeder breakers and mineral sizers, log washing and attrition scrubbing. Additionally, the front end of the classification circuit is located on this pad and consists of the hydrocyclone cluster, hydraulic classifiers, thickening and coarse gangue discharge and stacking system.

The remainder of the process plant is located approximately two miles east. The slurry is transferred to the downstream plant via a pipeline and trench along the southern edge of the haul road. Product flows are generally clockwise starting in the western edge of the upper third zone of the layout. The remainder of the classification (centrifuges), leach, and neutralization circuits begin the process flow on this site. Next the solution is sent to the CCD circuit before being sent to the filtration area located on the northeastern side. Magnesium removal continues south to a central section of the plant before flowing west to calcium precipitation, calcium and boron ion exchange, evaporation, and lithium carbonate production followed by ZLD crystallization. The packaging system, along with the warehouse, are immediately west of the lithium carbonate plant to minimize product transfer distance. The sulfuric acid plant is situated in the southern third of the layout in recognition of prevailing winds. The traffic flow is largely one-way counter-clockwise on the site perimeter with maintenance access between major process areas.

Reagents, Consumables and Shipping

Limestone, quicklime, flocculant, and soda ash reagents are delivered to the processing plant in solid form via trucks while liquid sulfur, propane, carbon dioxide, ferric sulfate, caustic soda, and hydrochloric acid are delivered as liquids, also by trucks.

Gasoline, on and off highway diesel along with typical plant warehouse deliveries have been kept to the western portion of the plant with direct access from the main entry minimizing delivery truck exposure to the site. The large equipment warehouse house is located directly south of these facilities.

Battery-grade lithium carbonate is packaged in bags and flexible intermediate bulk containers, and are stored in a warehouse on the west side which is collocated with the plant warehouse.

Raw Material Logistics

Raw materials for Thacker Pass are to be delivered to the site by over highway trucks during the life of mine. A local rail-to-truck transloading facility located in Winnemucca will allow for transfer of most raw materials for delivery to the Thacker Pass site. A summary of the primary raw materials to be used during operations, and their logistics, is shown below in

tabular form. This will include the limestone grinding and storage facility, soda ash transloading facility and the sulfur transloading facility. The cost per tonne of the raw material is included in the Operating Costs for the consumables.


Life of Mine Primary Raw Material Logistics Scheme
Raw Material	Description	Approximate Truck Loads per Day
Liquid Sulfur	Includes unloading, storage, and delivery to the plant via 39-tonne tanker from a transloading facility in Winnemucca, NV.	47
Soda Ash	Includes unloading, storage, and delivery to the plant via 39-tonne trailer from a transloading facility in Winnemucca, NV.	18
Quicklime	Includes unloading, storage, and delivery to the plant via 39-tonne trailer from Savage transloading facility in Golconda, NV. Optionally, may be shipped to site from a transloading facility in Winnemucca, NV with minor capital improvements.	10
Limestone	Includes operation of in-pit primary crusher, delivery to the process plant via 39-tonne trailer and secondary limestone crushing/screening/grinding plant at process plant.	31
Fuel	Includes diesel, unleaded gasoline, propane and their unloading, and delivery to the plant via 10,000 or 12,500 gallon trailer to site. Optionally, may be shipped to site from a transloading facility in Winnemucca, NV.	>1
Other	Includes delivery to the plant via 21-tonne trailer of Ferric Sulfate, Hydrochloric Acid, Caustic Soda, and Flocculant direct to site. Optionally, may be shipped to site from a transloading facility in Winnemucca, NV with minor capital improvements.	>6

Power Supply

Electrical power for Thacker Pass will be supplied by on-site power generation and via the grid connected to the nearby local electric utility cooperative, Harney Electric Cooperative (“HEC”) 115 kV transmission network. Thacker Pass will generate a portion of the steady-state power demand via Steam Turbine Generators driven by steam produced by the sulfuric acid plant. The remainder of steady-state loads and any peaks will be serviced by power purchased from HEC.

Sulfuric Acid Production

The sulfuric acid plants for Thacker Pass are Double Contact Double Absorption (“DCDA”) sulfur burning sulfuric acid plants with heat recovery systems. The plants sizing was maximized based upon the use of single pieces of equipment such as a single blower train instead of two operating in parallel, and a single waste heat boiler to optimize production versus capital.

Phase 1 and Phase 2 will each have a single sulfuric acid plant capable of producing nominal 3,000 t/d (100 weight % H2SO4 basis) of sulfuric acid by burning liquid elemental sulfur. Sulfur is delivered to site by truck and is unloaded by gravity into a single Sulfur Unloading Pit which provides sulfur to both sulfuric acid plants. The sulfuric acid generated from each plant is used in the process plant for the chemical production of lithium carbonate. The total annual operating days is based upon expected scheduled and unscheduled maintenance. Acid production is a function of the plant’s nominal capacity and production over Design Capacity with production efficiency of the equipment decreasing over a three-year period until scheduled maintenance occurs. Each sulfuric acid plant has two Liquid Sulfur Storage Tanks with a combined storage capacity of 28 days. The sulfur is transferred from the tanks to the Sulfur Feed Pit and from there to the Sulfur Furnace.

Water Source

The existing Quinn Raw Water Well has been tested and is able to sustain 908 m3/h (4,000 gallons per minute (gpm)) which satisfies the expected average demand servicing all potable, mining and process flow streams for Phase 2. A backup well is planned to be installed one mile west of the existing production well to maintain a constant supply of water if one well pump is down for maintenance or repairs.

Waste Rock and Tailings

The table below shows a summary of the volumes contained in each storage facility and the estimated volume of each facility at the end of the 40-year mine life.


Design and Requirement Volumes for Stockpiles and Facilities (Millions of Cubic Yards)
Facility Name	Design Storage Mm3 (MCY)	40 Year LOM Required Storage Mm3 (MCY)
West Waste Rock Storage Facility (WRSF)	21.3 (27.9)	20.2 (26.4)
East Waste Rock Storage Facility (WRSF)	16.3 (21.3)	0 (0)
Coarse Gangue Stockpile (CGS)	17.5 (22.9)	17.5 (22.9)


Growth Media Stockpiles (GMS)	12.3 (16.1)	5.0(6.6)
Clay Tailings Filter Stack (CTFS)	266.9 (349.1)	250.7 (327.9)
All facilities have expansion potential.

Note: Storage quantities largely determined by short-term processing requirements or surface area mined, and thus are not reassessed for the 25-year case separately. Mm3 = millions of cubic metres. MCY = million cubic yards.

Environmental Studies, Permitting, and Social or Community Impact

Thacker Pass is located on public lands administered by the BLM. Construction of Thacker Pass requires permits and approvals from various Federal, State, and local government agencies.

The process for BLM authorization includes the submission of a proposed Mine Plan of Operations (PoO, previously defined) and Reclamation Plan for approval by the agency. The Company submitted the Thacker Pass Project Proposed PoO and Reclamation Plan Permit Application on August 1, 2019. The permit application was preceded by the Company’s submission of baseline environmental studies documenting the collection and reporting of data for environmental, natural, and socio-economic resources used to support mine planning and design, impact assessment, and approval processes.

As part of the overall permitting and approval process, the BLM completed an analysis in accordance with the NEPA to assess the reasonably foreseeable impacts to the human and natural environment that could result from the implementation of Project activities. As the lead Federal regulatory agency managing the NEPA process, the BLM prepared and issued a Final Environmental Impact Statement (“FEIS”), on December 3, 2020. Following the issuance of the FEIS, BLM issued the EIS Record of Decision and Plan of Operations Approval on January 15, 2021. In addition, a detailed Reclamation Cost Estimate has been prepared and submitted to both the BLM and Nevada Division of Environmental Protection-Bureau of Mining, Regulation and Reclamation (the “NDEP-BMRR”). On October 28, 2021, the NDEP-BMRR approved the PoO with the issuance of draft Reclamation Permit 0415. On February 25, 2022, the NDEP-BMRR issued the final Reclamation Permit 0415. The BLM will require the placement of a financial guarantee (reclamation bond) to ensure that all disturbances from the mine and process site are reclaimed once mining concludes.

There are no identified issues that are expected to prevent the Company from achieving all permits and authorizations required to commence construction and operation of Thacker Pass based on the data that has been collected to date.

Summary Schedule for Permitting, Approvals, and Construction

Thacker Pass is being considered in two phases, lasting 40 years. The Company will utilize existing highways to service Thacker Pass. The following is a summary schedule for permitting, approvals and construction:

▪

Q3 2018 – Submitted Conceptual Mine Plan of Operations

▪

Q3 2019 – Submitted Proposed Mine Plan of Operations and Reclamation Plan Permit Application, BLM deems the document technically complete

▪

Q1 2020 – BLM published a Notice of Intent to prepare an EIS in the Federal Register

▪

Q1 2021 – Final EIS and Record of Decision issued by BLM

▪

Q1 2022 – Issuance of final WPCP, Reclamation Permit, and Class II Air Quality Operating Permit

▪

Q1 2023 – Initiate early-works construction

▪

Q3-Q4 2023 – Initiate Plant Construction

▪

Q1 2026 – Commissioning process plant, initiate mining,

▪

Q4 2026 – Steady state production

Community Engagement

LAC has developed a Community Engagement Plan (“Community Engagement Plan”), recognizing that the support of stakeholders is important to the success of Thacker Pass. Thacker Pass was designed to reflect information collected during numerous stakeholder meetings. The Community Engagement Plan is updated annually.

Social or Community Impacts

During operations, it is expected that most employees will be sourced from the surrounding area, which already has established social and community infrastructure including housing, retail and commercial facilities such as stores and restaurants; and public service infrastructure including schools, medical and public safety departments and fire and police/sheriff departments.

Based on the projected mine life, the number of potential hourly and salaried positions, and the projected salary ranges, Thacker Pass operations would have a long-term positive impact to direct, indirect, and induced local and regional economics. Phase 2 full production will require approximately 500 direct employees to support Thacker Pass, with the average annual salary estimated at $90,000. An additional and positive economic benefit would be the creation of short-term positions for construction activities. It is estimated that approximately 1,000 temporary construction jobs will be created. Additional jobs will be created through ancillary and support services, such as transportation, maintenance and supplies.

The Fort McDermitt Tribe is located approximately 60 km (35 miles) by road from the Thacker Pass site. LAC and the Fort McDermitt Tribe have devoted more than 20 meetings to focus on an agreement to solidify engagement and improvements at the Fort McDermitt community. A community benefits agreement was signed by the Company and the Fort McDermitt Paiute Shoshone tribe in October 2022. The benefits agreement will provide infrastructure development including a community center with a daycare, preschool, playground, cultural facility and communal greenhouse; training and employment opportunities; support for cultural education and preservation; and synergistic business and contracting opportunities.

For nearly two years, LAC has met regularly with the community of Orovada, which is approximately 20 km (12 miles) from the Thacker Pass site and is the closest community to Thacker Pass. The purpose of the meetings was to identify community concerns and explore ways to address them. The meetings began informally and were open to the entire community. Eventually, the community formed a committee to work with LAC. A facilitator was hired to manage a process that focused on priority concerns and resolution. The committee and LAC have addressed issues such as the local K-8 school and determined that a new school should be built in Orovada, the design and construction of which will be 100% funded by LAC. The community has agreed to a new location and LAC has worked with the BLM to secure the site for the Humboldt County School District. LAC has also completed a preliminary design for the school and is moving forward with detailed engineering and construction planning.

Capital and Operating Costs

Capital Cost Estimate

The capital cost estimate for Thacker Pass covers post-sanction early works, mine development, mining, the process plant, the transload facility, commissioning and all associated infrastructure required to allow for successful construction and operations.(1) The cost estimates presented in this section pertain to three categories of capital costs:

▪

Phase 1 and Phase 2 Development capital costs

▪

Phase 1 and Phase 2 Sustaining capital costs

▪

Closure capital costs

Development capital costs include the EPCM estimate as well as LAC’s estimate for LAC’s scope costs. Sustaining capital costs for Thacker Pass have been estimated and are primarily for continued development of the clay tailings filter stack and coarse gangue stockpile, mining activities, sulfuric acid plant and plant and infrastructure sustaining capital expenditures.

Development capital costs commence with detailed engineering and site early works following project sanction by the owner and continue to mechanical completion and commissioning. Mining pre-production costs have been capitalized and are included under development capital. The capital costs for years after commencement of production are carried as sustaining capital. Pre-sanction costs from completion of the Thacker Pass TR to project sanction, including environmental impact assessments, permit approvals and other property costs are excluded from this report and these costs are not included in the development capital.

Direct costs include the costs of all equipment and materials and the associated contractors required to perform installation and construction. The contractor indirects are included in the direct cost estimate as a percent of direct labor cost. EPCM / project indirects were detailed out in a resource plan to account for all identified costs, then budgeted as a percent of construction and equipment to be distributed through the process areas. In general, these costs include:

▪

Installation contractor’s mobilization, camp, bussing, meals, and temporary facilities & power

▪

EPCM

▪

Commissioning and Vendors

▪

Contingency

Contract mining capital repayment includes the 60-month financed repayment of the miner’s mobile equipment assets acquired prior to the start of operation.

(1) Capital cost information is based on Q1-Q3 2022 pricing for process and infrastructure capital costs, Q2 2021 for sulfuric acid plant and power plant equipment, and Q2 2022 for mine capital estimates.

The table below shows the development capital cost estimate developed for Thacker Pass.


Development Capital Cost Estimate Summary
Description	Ph1 Costs (US$ M)	PH2 Costs (US$ M)	Responsible
Mine
Equipment Capital (Contract Mining)	0	0	Sawtooth
Mine Development	51.1	26.3	Sawtooth
Contingency (13.1%)	6.7	3.4	Sawtooth/EDG
Total Mine	57.8	29.7
Process Plant and Infrastructure
Costs (Directs & Indirects)	1,735.4	1,398.5	M3/ITAC
Contingency (13.1%)	227.3	183.2	M3/ITAC/EDG
Total Process Plant and Infrastructure	1,962.7	1,581.7
Offsite – Transload Facility
Costs (Directs & Indirects)	69.0	27.1	Owner/Savage
Contingency (13.1%)	9.0	3.5	Owner/EDG
Total Offsite – Transload Facility	78.1	30.6
Owner’s Costs
Costs	149.8	75.6	Owner
Contingency (13.1%)	19.6	9.9	Owner/EDG
Total Owner’s Costs	169.4	85.5
TOTAL DEVELOPMENT CAPITAL	2,268.0	1,727.5

Due to rounding, some totals may not correspond with the sum of the separate figures. The cost accuracies are within 25% and contingencies are within 15%.

Sustaining Capital costs for the base case totaling US$1,510.2 million have been estimated over the Life of Mine (“LOM”), as outlined in the table below.


Sustaining Capital Estimate Summary (40-Year LOM – Base Case)
Description	*LOM Costs (US$ M)	Responsible
Mine
Equipment Capital	264.3	Sawtooth/M3

Mobile Equipment
Equipment Capital	26.6	Owner

Process Plant and Infrastructure
Process Plant	822.9	Owner
Sulfuric Acid Plant	244.2	EXP
CTFS and CGS	149.0	Owner

Offsite Transload Facility
Transload Facility	3.4	Owner
TOTAL SUSTAINING CAPITAL	1,510.2
Contact Mining Capital Repayment	48.8	Owner

The cost accuracies are within 25% and contingencies are within 15%.

Closure Costs

Closure costs are estimated based upon necessary reclamation, remediation, and closure of the 40-year facility. These closure costs of $53.5M will be updated as operations continue, and concurrent reclamation takes place. Site overhead during closure will be a corporate cost.

Operating Cost Estimate

Annual operating costs are summarized by operating area: Mine, Lithium Process Plant, Sulfuric Acid Plant, and General & Administrative. Operating costs in each area include labor, maintenance materials and supplies, raw materials, outside services, among others. The process operating costs are based on Q1-Q4 2022 pricing. Estimates are prepared on an annual basis and include all site-related operating costs associated with the production of lithium carbonate. All operating costs incurred from project award, up to but excluding commissioning, are deemed preproduction costs and have been included in the Capital Expenditures, as they are considered part of construction.


Operating Cost Estimate Summary (40-Year LOM – Base Case)
Area	Annual Average ($-M)	$/tonne Product	Percent of Total
Mine	76.4	1,144	16%
Lithium Process Plant	214.6	3,213	45%
Liquid Sulfuric Acid Plant	175.4	2,627	36%
General & Administrative	14.3	215	3%
Total	$480.7	7,198	100%

The cost accuracies are within 25% and contingencies are within 15%. The following items are excluded from the Operating Cost estimate:

▪

Cost escalation (due to quotes being refreshed in 2022)

▪

Currency fluctuations

▪

All costs incurred prior to commercial operations

▪

Corporate office costs

▪

First fills (included in Capital Expenditures),

▪

Closure and reclamation costs post operations (concurrent reclamation is included)

▪

Salvage value of equipment and infrastructure

Economic Analysis

Based on Q2 – Q4 2022 pricing, the economic evaluation presents the after-tax net present value (“NPV”), payback period, and the after-tax internal rate of return (“IRR”) for Thacker Pass based on annual cash flow projections.(1)

This economic analysis includes sensitivities to variations in selling prices, various operating costs, initial and sustaining capital costs, overall lithium production recovery, and discount rate. All cases assume maximum utilization of the acid plant’s available acid and power, with lithium production fluctuating by year according to mine plan and plant performance as predicted by yearly heat/mass balance simulations in Aspen Plus®, conducted by LAC.

(1) This economic analysis does not include updates from the Reports, such as capital and operating costs.

Production and Revenues

Phase 1 Project is designed for a nominal production rate of 40,000 t/y of lithium carbonate and begins production in year 1 through year 3. Phase 2 production is anticipated to begin in year 4 and includes the addition of a second acid plant and processing infrastructure to double production with a nominal production rate of 80,000 t/y of lithium carbonate. Actual

production varies with the grade of ore mined in each year with an expected mine life of 40 years. The base case value for price selling was set at $24,000/t lithium carbonate.


Total Annual Production and Revenue (40 Year LOM – Base Case)
Production and Revenue	Annual Average	Total
Lithium Carbonate Production (t)	66,783	2,671,318
Lithium Carbonate Revenue ($-M)	$1,603	$64,112
Annual Lithium Carbonate Selling Price ($/t)	$24,000

Financing

LAC is contemplating multiple options for funding the construction and operation of Thacker Pass. Financial modeling has considered multiple discount rates to account for various funding avenues. Project financing costs are excluded from the model.

Discount Rate

A discount rate of 8% per year has been applied to the model, though other levels from 6-16% are also included for Project assessment at various risk profiles and financing options.

Taxes

The modeling is broken into the following categories: Operational Taxes (which are eligible deductions to arrive at taxable income) and Corporate Net Income Taxes. The 10% operating cost tax credit under the US Inflation Reduction Act for “Advanced Manufacturing Production” has been applied during the first 10 years of Project operation. The legislation specifies phase-out of this credit after 10 years.

Operational Taxes

Payroll taxes are included in salary burdens applied in the operational expense or operating cost estimate. These include social security, Medicare, federal and state unemployment, Nevada modified business tax, workers compensation and health insurance.

Property tax is assessed by the Nevada Centrally Assessed Properties group on any property operating a mine and/or mill supporting a mine. Tax is 3% to 3.5% of the assessed value, which is estimated at 35% of the taxable value of the property. The property tax owed each year is estimated as 1.1% of the net book value at the close of the prior year plus current year expenditures with no depreciation.

Corporate Net Income Taxes

In Nevada lithium mining activities are taxed at 2-5% of net proceeds, depending on the ratio of net proceeds to gross proceeds. Net proceeds are estimated as equal to gross profit for purposes of this study. A tax rate of 5% is applicable to Thacker Pass.

Revenue subject to a net proceeds of minerals tax is exempt from the Nevada Commerce tax; therefore, the Nevada Commerce tax is excluded from the study.

The current corporate income tax rate applicable to Thacker Pass under the Tax Cut and Jobs Act is 21% of taxable income.

Royalties

Thacker Pass is subject to a 1.75% royalty on net revenue produced directly from ore, subject to a buy-down right. This royalty has been included in the economic model on the assumption that the Thacker Pass owner will exercise its buy-down right to reduce the royalty from 8.0% to 1.75% by making an upfront payment of US$22 million in the first year of operations. At US$24,000/t lithium carbonate the ongoing annual royalty payments will average $428/t lithium carbonate sold over the 40-year LOM (base case).

Undiscounted annual cash flows, including Capital Expenditures, Operating Costs, and net revenues (pre-tax) are presented in the figure below.

Undiscounted Annual Cash Flow

Cumulative Discounted Cash Flow

Cumulative discounted cash flow at the 8% discount rate is presented in the table below.

For the Base Case financial assumptions, Thacker Pass financial performance is measured through Net Present value, Internal Rate of Return and Payback periods. The after-tax financial model results are summarized in the table below.


After-Tax Financial Model Results (40 Year LOM – Base Case)
Production Scenario	Unit	Values
Operational Life	Years	40
Mine and Process Plant Operational Life	Years	40
Ore Reserve Life	Years	40
Average annual EBITDA	$-M / Y	1,093.5
After-tax Net Present Value (“NPV”) @ 8% discount rate	$-M	5,727.0
After-tax Internal Rate of Return	%	21.4%
Payback (undiscounted)	Years	5.4
*includes capital investments in years up to production

The table below presents NPV and IRR at a range of discount rates for three lithium carbonate product selling price cases: -50% (downside), 0% (base-fixed), and +50% (high).


After-Tax NPV at 8% and IRR
Economic Indicator	Unit	Value
NPV @ 8%	$ millions	$5,727
IRR	%	21.4%
Payback	Years	5.4
Payback (discounted)	Years	5.4


Selling Price ($/tonne)	$12,000	$24,000	$36,000
NPV ($-M)	($623)	$5,727	$11,829
IRR (%)	6.0%	21.4%	31.9%

The table below presents the sensitivity of NPV to different discount rates.


NPV for Various Discount Rates (40-Year LOM)
Economic Indicators after Taxes	Years 1-25 of 40-Year LOM	40-Year LOM
NPV @ 0%	$19,500,605	$30,108,567
NPV @ 6%	$6,947,487	$8,398,919
NPV @ 8%	$4,950,134	$5,726,852
NPV @ 10%	$3,497,855	$3,920,727
NPV @ 12%	$2,425,349	$2,659,351
NPV @ 16%	$1,012,718	$1,087,688

Exploration, Development, and Production

Subsequent to the filing of the Reports, the Company has revised the target timeline with respect to its proposed plan for Thacker Pass. Please see "Recent Developments" above for additional information relating to this revised target timing. The proposed execution plan for Thacker Pass incorporates an integrated strategy for EPCM.

Comparison of Mineral Resource and Mineral Reserve Estimates Reported for 2023 and 2022

There have been no changes to the previously reported mineral resources or reserves for Thacker Pass.

Internal Controls Relating to Mineral Resource and Mineral Reserve Estimates

The Company has internal controls for reviewing and documenting the information supporting the mineral resource and mineral reserve estimates, describing the methods used, and ensuring the validity of the estimates.

Information that is used to compile mineral resources and mineral reserves is prepared and certified by appropriately qualified persons at the project level and is subject to our internal review process which includes review by appropriate project management and the qualified person based in our corporate office. The Company engages external professional firms to prepare its Mineral Resource and Mineral Reserve Estimates and the process includes review, independent verification and sign off by external independent qualified persons.

The corporate qualified person reviews the mineral resource and mineral reserve information to be presented to the Board for their review.

ITEM 4A. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

None.

ITEM 5. OPERATING AND FINANCIAL REVIEW AND PROSPECTS

A. Operating Results

See the Management's Discussion and Analysis of the Company for the year ended December 31, 2023 incorporated by reference into this Form 20-F as Exhibit 15.12.

B. Liquidity and Capital Resources

See the Management's Discussion and Analysis of the Company for the year ended December 31, 2023 incorporated by reference into this Form 20-F as Exhibit 15.12.

C. Research and Development, Patents and Licenses, etc.

The Company holds patents in several countries on certain beneficiation processes and techniques concerning sedimentary deposits. The length of the patents varies by jurisdiction.

D. Trend Information

While the Company does not have any operating lithium projects, it is directly affected by trends in the lithium industry. Global lithium prices have been extremely volatile over the past several years. Lithium prices, driven by rising global demand for electric vehicles, climbed dramatically and approached historic highs in late 2022/early 2023. Prices moderated since those highs, but remained at historically elevated levels in 2023 versus prior cycle low pricing. Despite the moderation in pricing, the global production volume of lithium chemicals has continued to grow to address demand including the roughly 20% CAGAR growth in electric vehicles. More recently, the moderation in pricing has caused high-cost mining operations to shutter output which has resulted in pricing stabilizing over the last few months.

Overall market prices for securities in the lithium sector and factors affecting such prices, including electric vehicles supply and demand, political trends in the countries in which such companies operate, and general economic conditions, may have an effect on the terms on which financing is available to the Company.

Except as disclosed, the Company does not know of any trends, demand, commitments, events or uncertainties that will result in, or that are reasonably likely to result in, its liquidity either materially increasing or decreasing at present or in the foreseeable future.

The Company's financial assets and liabilities generally consist of cash and cash equivalents, receivables, deposits, accounts payable and accrued liabilities. The Company does not currently have major commitments to acquire assets in foreign currencies.

E. Critical Accounting Estimates

Not applicable.

ITEM 6. DIRECTORS, SENIOR MANAGEMENT AND EMPLOYEES

A. Directors and Senior Management

The following are the directors and members of senior management of the Company:


Name	Age(1)	Position
Michael Brown*	65	Director
Fabiana Chubbs*	58	Director
Kelvin Dushnisky	59	Executive Chair and Director
Jonathan Evans	54	Director, President and Chief Executive Officer
Yuan Gao*	60	Lead Independent Director
Richard Gerspacher	49	Executive Vice President, Capital Projects
Edward Grandy	55	Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary
Zach Kirkman	38	Director
Jinhee Magie*	56	Director
Pablo Mercado	47	Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Philip Montgomery*	59	Director
Alexi Zawadzki	52	Vice President, Resource Development

* Independent Director

(1)

As of December 31, 2023

Biographical information with respect to each of our directors and our senior management is set forth below.

Jonathan Evans, Director, President and Chief Executive Officer

Mr. Evans is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, and is also a director of the Company, since October 2023 as at the Separation. He was a Director of Old LAC from June 2017 to October 2023, and served as its President from August of 2018 and as Chief Executive Officer from May of 2019 to October 2023. Mr. Evans has more than 20 years of operations and general management experience across businesses of various sizes and industry applications. Previously, he served as Vice President and General Manager for the Lithium Division at FMC Corporation (USA), and as the Chief Operating Officer of DiversiTech Corporation, a portfolio company of the private equity group, Permira. Mr. Evans has also held executive management roles at Arysta LifeScience, AMRI Corporation and General Electric. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering from Clarkson University and an MSc from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Pablo Mercado, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Mr. Mercado is the Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of the Company since October 2023 as at the Separation. He was the Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Old LAC from April to October 3, 2023. He has over 24 years of experience in finance and corporate development in the energy industry. Most recently he served as Chief Financial Officer of EnLink Midstream, LLC, and prior to that, as Chief Financial Officer of Forum Energy Technologies, Inc., both U.S. public companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Mr. Mercado has been a Director of Comfort System USA since November 2018, serving as the Chair of the Audit Committee since May 2021. Mr. Mercado started his professional career in 1998 as an investment banker at Bank of America, UBS and Credit Suisse, until joining Forum in 2011. He holds a BBA from the Cox School of Business and a BA in Economics from the Dedman College, both of Southern Methodist University, and an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

Richard Gerspacher, Executive Vice President, Capital Projects

Mr. Gerspacher is the Executive Vice President, Capital Projects of the Company since October 2023 as at the Separation. He was the Senior Vice President, Capital Projects at Old LAC from February 2022 to October 3, 2023. He has over 20 years of leadership experience in developing and executing successful projects throughout the world in a variety of sectors including industrial minerals, metals mining and power generation. Prior to joining Old LAC, Mr. Gerspacher worked for Fluor Corporation, a global engineering and construction company where he served as Vice President and Projects Director for a lithium project in Australia. He also served as Chairman of Fluor's Latin America Talent Development Team and as a member of their Global Project Management Talent Development Team. Mr. Gerspacher holds a Professional Engineer designation, and has a Bachelor's degree in Civil-Structural Engineering from the University of Detroit and a Master of Business Administration degree from Duke University.

Edward Grandy, Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary

Mr. Grandy is the Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary since October 2023 as at the Separation. He was the Vice President of Legal and Regulatory Affairs of Old LAC from 2018 to October 3, 2023. He was General Counsel of Barrick Gold Corporation's copper business from 2012 to 2018. He is a legal department leader with broad experience in project development and regulatory compliance. Edward holds a Bachelor of Arts from Middlebury College and a J.D. from the Emory University School of Law.

Alexi Zawadzki, Vice President, Resource Development

Mr. Zawadzki is the Vice President, Resource Development of the Company since October 2023 as at the Separation. He served as the President of North American Operations of Old LAC from August 2017 to October 3, 2023, and as the CEO of Lithium Nevada Corp. He has over 20 years of experience developing mining and energy projects in roles of increasing responsibility. Following 10 years working for an international engineering consultancy, in 2007 he founded a publicly traded renewable energy company resulting in the construction and operation of two hydroelectric facilities. Since 2014, he has been focused on the lithium sector as an enabler of renewable energy technologies. Mr. Zawadzki trained as a hydrologist and holds a Masters degree from Wilfrid Laurier University.

Kelvin Dushnisky, Director and Executive Chair

Mr. Dushnisky is a director and the Executive Chair of the Company. He joined the Board in October 2023, and served as Director of Old LAC from June 2021 to October 2023. Mr. Dushnisky served as Chief Executive Officer and a member of the board of directors of AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. from 2018 to 2020. There he led the execution of the organization’s strategic priorities and oversaw a global portfolio of mining operations and projects in Africa, South America and Australia, along with exploration interests and investments in Canada and the USA. Prior to AngloGold Ashanti, Mr. Dushnisky had a sixteen-year career with Barrick Gold Corporation, ultimately as its President and a member of the Barrick board of directors. Prior to Barrick, Mr. Dushnisky held senior executive and board positions with a number of private and listed companies. Mr. Dushnisky holds a B.Sc. (Hon.) degree from the University of Manitoba and M.Sc. and Juris Doctor degrees from the University of British Columbia. He is a member of the Law Society of British Columbia and the Canadian Bar Association. Among numerous other industry and related associations, Mr. Dushnisky is past Chair of the World Gold Council and a former member of the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) CEO Counsil and Accenture Global Mining Council. Mr. Dushnisky is a past member of the Board of Trustees of the Toronto-based University Health Network (UHN).

Michael Brown, Director and Chair, Safety and Sustainability Committee

Mr. Brown is a director and joined the Board on October 3, 2023. He is a Fellow at the Lincy Institute at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He joined UNLV following service in the Cabinet of Governor Sisolak of Nevada; first as Director of the Department of Business & Industry and then as Executive Director of the Governor’s Office of Economic Development. Previously, Mr. Brown served as President of Barrick Gold North America, a subsidiary of Barrick Gold Corporation from 2015 to 2018 after serving in roles of increasing responsibility with Barrick since 1994. He is a former member of the executive committee of the U.S. National Mining Association and a past Chairman of the Nevada Mining Association. Mr. Brown holds an MBA from George Washington University. In 2023 Mr. Brown completed the Public Company Directors’ Consortium at the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Fabiana Chubbs, Director and Chair, Audit and Risk Committee

Ms. Chubbs is a director. She joined the Board in October 2023 as at the Separation, and served as Director at Old LAC from June 2019 to October 2023. Ms. Chubbs served as the Chief Financial Officer of Eldorado Gold Corporation from 2011 to 2018. She joined Eldorado Gold Corporation in 2007 and led Treasury and Risk Management functions until accepting the Chief Financial Officer position. Prior to joining Eldorado Gold Corporation, Ms. Chubbs was a Senior Manager with PwC Canada. During her ten years at PwC Canada, she specialized in audit of public mining and technology companies. Ms. Chubbs started her career in her native Argentina, with experience divided between PwC Argentina and IBM. Ms. Chubbs holds dual degrees from the University of Buenos Aires, including a Certified Public Accountant bachelor’s degree, and a Bachelor of Business Administration degree. Ms. Chubbs is a Chartered Professional Accountant in Canada. Ms. Chubbs also serves on the board of Royal Gold, Inc.

Yuan Gao, Lead Independent Director and Chair, Governance and Nomination Committee

Dr. Yuan Gao is a director. He joined the Board in October 2023 and served as Director of Old LAC from September 2019 to October 2023. He was the Vice Chairman of the board of Qinghai Taifeng Pulead Lithium-Energy Technology Co. Ltd, a leading producer of cathodes for lithium-ion batteries, from September 2019 to May 2023, having served as President and CEO from May 2014 to September 2019. Previously, Yuan served as Vice President at Molycorp Inc., and as Global Marketing Director and Technology Manager at FMC Corporation (USA). Yuan holds a BSc from the University of Science and Technology of China, and a PhD in Physics from the University of British Columbia. He has also completed Executive Education at The Wharton Business School, University of Pennsylvania.

Zach Kirkman, Director

Mr. Kirkman is GM’s nominee to the Board and has served as a Director of the Company since October 2023 as at the Separation. He is the Vice President, Global Corporate Development and President, GM Ventures of General Motors Company since January 2023, and prior to that served as the Head of Corporate Development, Merger and Acquisitions of Tesla, Inc. from August 2016 to December 2022. Mr. Kirkman has extensive M&A and investing experience gained during his time leading the corporate development teams of GM and Tesla, and previously as part of Apple Inc.’s corporate development department. He holds an MBA from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Bachelor of Science from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo.

Jinhee Magie, Director

Ms. Magie is a director. She joined the Board in October 2023 as at the Separation, and served as a Director at Old LAC from June 2021 to October 2023. Ms. Magie served as the Chief Financial Officer and Senior Vice President of Lundin Mining Corporation (leading diversified base metals producer) from October 2018 to September 2022, overseeing financial reporting, treasury, tax, and information technology (including cybersecurity). She joined Lundin in 2008, serving in various roles of increasing responsibility, including nine years as Vice President, Finance. With over 25 years of experience, Ms. Magie began her career with Ernst & Young and has held progressively more senior roles in public companies, with the last 15 years in the mining industry. Before joining Lundin, Ms. Magie was the Director of Corporate Compliance for LionOre Mining International Ltd. She has extensive experience in acquisitions and divestitures, public and private equity fundraising and public company reporting. Ms. Magie holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Toronto and is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA, CA).

Philip Montgomery, Director

Mr. Montgomery is a director. He joined the Board in October 2023 as at the Separation. Mr. Montgomery is a non-executive director at Walkabout Resources Ltd. He brings extensive global experience in major capital projects. Over his 35-year career at BHP Group Limited and its predecessor organizations, Mr. Montgomery worked across various geographies and commodities, demonstrating expertise in leading assets and projects as well as senior corporate roles, including Chief Growth Officer, Global Head of Group Project Management and Vice President – Projects. Mr. Montgomery is a Professional Engineer and holds a B.Sc. in Mechanical Engineering and Business Management from Oxford Brookes University.

B. Compensation

Director Compensation

Our director compensation program has been designed to be competitive to market. LAC intends to review the program with the assistance of an independent compensation consultant every two years to allow LAC to attract and retain qualified directors to serve on our Board, and the first review is expected to occur in 2024. The compensation peer group for purposes of benchmarking director compensation is the same as that for our executive compensation program. See “Item 6.B – Compensation – Executive Compensation – Compensation Benchmarking” for further details.

Director Fee Schedule

The fee schedule for independent directors for the year ended December 31, 2023 is set out below and is substantially the same as the fee schedule for independent directors of Old LAC prior to completion of the Separation. Compensation we pay to our independent directors is comprised of fees for serving on the Board and committees, and fees for attending meetings in excess of ten Board and committee meetings combined annually. Fees are payable quarterly, through a combination of cash and deferred share unit (“DSU”) grants at the election of each independent director and in accordance with the Company's equity incentive plan (the "Plan"). Fees are generally paid or issued for the previous quarter's services

concurrent with Board meetings to approve quarterly and annual filings. Where compensation for excess meeting fees becomes payable in any given year, such fees are paid on an annual basis.


Services by Independent Directors	Compensation (in cash or securities)
Annual base fees
Independent director fee (for all independent directors)	US$155,000 per year, with a minimum of US$90,000 payable in DSUs under the Plan

Additional fees for serving on committees

Annual fee for acting as Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee	US$20,000 per year

Annual fee for acting as Chair of any other committee	US$15,000 per year

Annual fee for serving as a non-Chair member of any committee	US$5,000 per year

Meeting fees for attending Board and committee meetings in excess of 10 meetings per year	US$1,000 per meeting

Special committee meeting fees	To be set by the Board concurrent with establishing the special committee, and dependent upon the expected workload

We also reimburse directors for reasonable travel and out-of-pocket expenses in connection with their services, including attendance at in-person meetings and site visits. Directors are also eligible to receive incentive stock options exercisable to purchase Common Shares (“Options”) under the Plan as compensation; however, the Company generally intends to award DSUs to directors, rather than Options, pursuant to its director compensation program.

Independent directors are compensated for serving on special committees, with fees set by the Board at the time the special committee is formed. There were no special committees of the Board during 2023. Old LAC had four special committee meetings related to the Separation during 2023.

Director Compensation Table

The table below summarizes the compensation earned by all directors other than directors who are also named executives for the year ended December 31, 2023.

In 2023, a total of US$765,462 in director compensation was earned by independent directors. The director compensation set out below is presented on an annual basis in that it reflects compensation earned for the time periods both prior to completion of the Separation (to the extent a director served as an independent director of Old LAC prior to completion of the Separation) and following completion of the Separation to directors of LAC. Prior to the Separation, director compensation was paid by Old LAC. Following the Separation, director compensation was paid by LAC. In connection with the Separation, holders of all deferred share units, restricted share units, and performance share units of Old LAC (the “Old LAC Units”) received, in exchange for such outstanding Old LAC Units, equivalent incentive securities of LAC and Lithium Argentina (the “Lithium Argentina Units”). In order to compensate for adjustments made to the Lithium Argentina Units pursuant to the application of subsection 7(1.4) of the Tax Act, certain directors and officers of LAC were granted additional RSUs on October 24, 2023, which vested on January 1, 2024 unless such directors opted to defer such vesting (the “Cutback Grant”), as more particularly described in the footnotes to the tables below. Although the Company has the discretion to award RSUs, PSUs and Options to directors under the Plan, the Cutback Grant was intended as a one-time grant to certain directors to compensate for certain adjustments under the Tax Act, and going-forward the Company intends to compensate directors with a combination of cash and DSUs, rather than RSUs, PSUs and/or Options, pursuant to its director compensation program.

The total amount of director compensation in the table below excludes compensation earned by Mr. Evans and to Mr. Dushnisky, who do not receive additional compensation for their services as directors of LAC but rather are compensated in connection with their respective executive roles. The table also excludes compensation earned by Mr. Dushnisky as a former independent director of Old LAC. Cash fees were paid and share-based awards were issued to Mr. Dushnisky by Old LAC for service as an independent director of Old LAC prior to completion of the Separation for the period January 1 to October 3, 2023. Such compensation and all compensation earned by Mr. Dushnisky by LAC in respect of his role as Executive Chair following completion of the Separation is disclosed in Item 6.B – Compensation – Executive Compensation below, including in respect of the Cutback Grant. As set out in more detail below, Mr. Kirkman did not receive compensation

for his services as a director in 2023. Mr. Brown and Mr. Montgomery became directors of LAC post-Separation and did not receive any fees from Old LAC.


Director Name	Fees Earned (US$)(1)	Share- Based Awards (US$)(2)	Option- Based Awards (US$)	Non- Equity Incentive Plan Compensation (US$)	Pension Value (US$)	All Other Compensation (US$)	Total (US$)(2)
Michael Brown(3)	12,313	32,938	-	-	-	-	45,251
Fabiana Chubbs(4)	103,750	134,819	-	-	-	-	238,569
Yuan Gao(5)	83,750	140,845	-	-	-	-	224,595
Zach Kirkman(6)	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Jinhee Magie(7)	103,250	105,298	-	-	-	-	208,548
Philip Montgomery(8)	26,000	22,500	-	-	-	-	48,500

Notes:

(1)

Cash portion of fees earned by each director. For those directors who served as directors of Old LAC prior to completion of the Separation and as directors of LAC following completion of the Separation, (i) prior to the Separation, director compensation was paid by Old LAC, and (ii) following the Separation, director compensation was paid by LAC.

(2)

Share-based awards portion of fees earned by each director. For those directors who served as directors of Old LAC prior to completion of the Separation and as directors of LAC following completion of the Separation, (i) prior to the Separation, share-based awards were issued by Old LAC, and (ii) following the Separation, share-based awards were issued by LAC. As noted above, in connection with the Separation, holders of Old LAC Units received, in exchange for such outstanding Old LAC Units, equivalent incentive securities of LAC and Lithium Argentina. Amounts presented are based on the estimated grant date fair value of the share-based awards.

(3)

Mr. Brown’s fees earned and share-based awards were paid and issued by LAC.

(4)

Ms. Chubbs’ fees earned were comprised of $24,250 in fees paid by LAC and $79,500 in fees paid by Old LAC. Ms. Chubbs’ share-based awards were comprised of $23,250 in DSUs, $30,569 in RSUs issued in respect of the Cutback Grant, and $81,000 in deferred share units issued by Old LAC.

(5)

Mr. Gao’s fees earned were comprised of $10,750 in fees paid by LAC and $73,000 in fees paid by Old LAC. Mr. Gao’s share-based awards were comprised of $38,750 in DSUs, $23,345 in RSUs issued in respect of the Cutback Grant, and $78,750 in deferred share units issued by Old LAC.

(6)

Pursuant to the GM Investor Rights Agreement, a director’s fee would be payable to Mr. Kirkman based on Mr. Kirkman’s service on the Board unless GM waives the fee. GM waived the director’s fee and as such Mr. Kirkman does not receive director compensation as the GM director nominee on the Board.

(7)

Ms. Magie’s fees earned were comprised of $27,250 in fees paid by LAC and $76,000 in fees paid by Old LAC. Ms. Magie’s share-based awards were comprised of $23,250 in DSUs, $7,798 in RSUs issued in respect of the Cutback Grant, and $74,250 in deferred share units issued by Old LAC.

(8)

Mr. Montgomery’s fees earned and share-based awards were paid and issued by LAC.

The following table provides a breakdown of the fees earned by independent directors in the table above, based on the services each director provided under the fee schedule, except as otherwise indicated:

    Director Name

     

    Board
Retainer
(US$)(1)

    Committee
Retainer
(US$)(1)

    Board and
Committee
Meeting Fees
(US$)(1)(2)

    Total
(US$)(1)

   

    Michael Brown

    Cash
Share-based Awards

    5,813
32,938

    5,000
-

    1,500
-

    12,313
32,938

   

    Fabiana Chubbs

    Cash
Share-based Awards

    62,000
123,569

    13,750
11,250

    28,000
-

    103,750
134,819

   

    Yuan Gao

    Cash
Share-based Awards

    46,500
131,845

    12,250
9,000

    25,000
-

    83,750
140,845

   

    Zach Kirkman(3)

    Cash
Share-based Awards

    -
-

    -
-

    -
-

    -
-

   

    Jinhee Magie

    Cash
Share-based Awards

    62,000
100,798

    9,250
4,500

    32,000
-

    103,250
105,298

   

    Philip Montgomery

    Cash
Share-based Awards

    16,250
22,500

    6,250
-

    3,500
-

    26,000
22,500

   

Notes:

(1)

For those directors who served as directors of Old LAC prior to completion of the Separation and as directors of LAC following completion of the Separation, (i) prior to the Separation, director compensation was paid by Old LAC, and (ii) following the Separation, director compensation was paid by LAC. The value of the Cutback Grant has been included in the share-based award portion of Board Retainer.

(2)

Fees earned by each independent director attending more than a combined total of 10 Board and committee meetings per calendar year.

(3)

Named Executive Officers

The named executive officers ("named executives" or "Named Executives") set out below are the Company's CEO, CFO, Executive Chair and the two other highest paid executive officers for the 2023 fiscal year.


Named Executive	Officer's Title

Jonathan Evans	Chief Executive Officer and President(1)

Pablo Mercado	Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer(2)

Kelvin Dushnisky	Executive Chair(3)

Richard Gerspacher	Executive Vice President, Capital Projects(4)

Alexi Zawadzki	Vice President, Resource Development(5)

Notes:

(1)

Mr. Evans has served as the President, Chief Executive Officer and a director of LAC since October 3, 2023 as at the Separation. He was a director of Old LAC from June 2017 to October 3, 2023, and served as its President from August 2018 and as its Chief Executive Officer from May 2019 to October 3, 2023.

(2)

Mr. Mercado has served as the Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of LAC since October 3, 2023 as at the Separation. He was the Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Old LAC from April to October 3, 2023.

(3)

Mr. Dushnisky has served as the Executive Chair of LAC since October 3, 2023 as at the Separation. He served as an independent director of Old LAC from June 2021 to October 3, 2023.

(4)

Mr. Gerspacher has served as the Executive Vice President, Capital Projects of LAC since October 3, 2023 as at the Separation. He was the Senior Vice President, Capital Projects of Old LAC from February 2022 to October 3, 2023.

(5)

Mr. Zawadzki has served as the Vice President, Resource Development of LAC since October 3, 2023 as at the Separation. He served as the President of North American Operations of Old LAC from August 2017 to October 3, 2023.

2023 Individual Performance and STI and LTI Awards

2023 STI awards for named executives based on their individual performance scorecards are set out in the table below.


Named Executive	Annual Base Salary (US$)	STI Cash Awards (US$)	Number of RSUs Awarded as STI Award(1)	RSU STI Award Value (US$)
Jonathan Evans	600,000	355,800	73,776	355,800
Pablo Mercado(2)	585,000	307,798	63,823	307,798
Kelvin Dushnisky(3)	590,000	-	34,499	166,380
Richard Gerspacher(4)	465,000	219,129	45,437	219,129
Alexi Zawadzki	330,750	146,357	30,347	146,357

Notes:

(1)

Based on the five-day VWAP of US$4.82 calculated as of the day prior to the grant date.

(2)

Base salary commencing effective as of April 24, 2023 when Mr. Mercado was appointed to serve as the Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer by Old LAC. His STI and LTI awards were not pro-rated but were rather based on a full year of his service in accordance with the terms of his employment agreement.

(3)

Base salary commencing effective as of October 3, 2023 when Mr. Dushnisky was appointed to serve as the Executive Chair of LAC. Mr. Dushnisky voluntarily chose to receive 100% of his STI in RSUs and requested that his LTI be pro-rated for the approximately three months of service based on his time in the position of Executive Chair commencing as at the Separation date.

(4)

Base salary as at October 3, 2023 as at the Separation. From January 1, 2023 to October 2, 2023, Mr. Gerspacher’s base salary was $420,000 in his role as the Senior Vice President, Capital Projects.

The calculated 2023 LTI awards granted to named executives based on their individual performance scorecards, and adjusted for long-term retention purposes are set out in the table below. The Board approved the 2023 PSU awards in January 2024, and such 2023 PSU awards will vest in January 2027. The performance vesting conditions for the 2023 PSU awards are currently being determined but have not yet been finalized by the Board.


Named Executive	Annual Base Salary (US$)	LTI Award Value(1) (US$)	Number of PSUs Awarded as LTI Award	Number of RSUs Awarded as LTI Award
Jonathan Evans	600,000	1,500,000	155,515	155,515
Pablo Mercado(2)	585,000	1,111,500	115,236	115,236
Kelvin Dushnisky(3)	590,000	147,500	15,292	15,292
Richard Gerspacher(4)	465,000	517,500	53,653	53,653
Alexi Zawadzki	330,750	347,288	36,006	36,006

Notes:

(1)

The fair value of PSUs was estimated on a 1:1 basis, however, the formula that will be used to determine the performance multiplier that will be used to calculate the value of PSUs relating to compensation is in the process of being finalized and remains subject to Board approval. The Company expects to disclose further details regarding the formula in its management information circular to be prepared and filed in connection with the Company’s 2024 annual meeting of shareholders.

(2)

(3)

Base salary commencing effective as of October 3, 2023 when Mr. Dushnisky was appointed to serve as the Executive Chair of LAC. His STI and LTI were pro-rated for approximately three months based on his time in the position of Executive Chair commencing as at the Separation. Mr. Dushnisky voluntarily chose to receive 100% of his STI in RSUs and requested that his LTI be pro-rated for the three months of service.

(4)

Summary Compensation Table

The table below sets out all compensation for named executives for our fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, including direct and indirect compensation. Named executives who are also directors of our Company are not compensated for their services as directors.

The named executive compensation set out below is presented on an annual basis in that it reflects compensation paid for the time periods both prior to and following completion of the Separation. Prior to the Separation, executive compensation was paid by Old LAC. Following the Separation, executive compensation was paid by LAC.


Named Executive and Principal Position	Year(1)	Salary (US$)	Equity-Based Compensation (US$)		Equity-Based Compensation (US$)	Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation (US$)	Replacement Grants (Share-based RSUs)(6)	All Other Compensation (US$)(7)	Pension Value (US$)	Total Compensation (US$)
Named Executive and Principal Position	Year(1)	Salary (US$)				Share- based STI Awards (US$)(2)	Replacement Grants (Share-based RSUs)(6)	All Other Compensation (US$)(7)	Pension Value (US$)	Total Compensation (US$)	Share- based LTI Awards (US$)(3)	Other Share-based Awards (US$)(4)	Annual Incentive Plans(5)
Jonathan (8) Evans, President and CEO	2023	600,000	355,800	1,500,000	-	355,800	268,373	126,521	-	3,206,494


Pablo (9) Mercado, Executive Vice President and CFO	2023	431,447	307,798	1,111,500	1,170,000	307,798	28,884	54,241	-	3,411,668


Kelvin (8)(10) Dushnisky, Executive Chair	2023	214,231	166,380	147,500	1,844,250	166,380	8,671	1,377	-	2,548,789