The Sayona Mining Ltd (ASX: SYA) share price is on course to record a strong gain.
At the time of writing, the lithium developer's shares are up 7% to 23 cents.
Why is the Sayona Mining share price jumping?
Investors have been bidding the Sayona Mining share price higher today in response to the release of an update on the company's North American Lithium (NAL) operation.
According to the release, the restart of NAL has advanced further, with procurement activities now 98% complete and permitting activities 96% finalised.
This leaves the operation on track for the recommencement of production in the first quarter of 2023.
Management also revealed that construction activities have continued to ramp up, with all installation packages awarded and the installation of the HP300 and HP400 cone crushers complete, along with other major equipment.
The good news is that its costs are in line with expectations despite rising inflation. The company revealed that commitments through to the end of October totalled C$46.1 million versus planned commitments of C$47.6 million.
Once operational, the existing plant has nameplate capacity to produce up to 220kt of spodumene concentrate or 30kt LCE per year. However, management is targeting an expansion of NAL's future mine production capacity following the recent acquisition of 48 new claims spanning nearly 2,000 hectares.
Sayona's Mining's managing director, Brett Lynch, commented:
NAL is progressing rapidly towards next year's restart, and our recent move to expand NAL's potential resource and mine production capacity will only further enhance its long‐term productivity. With lithium demand continuing to increase and supply remaining constrained, we are focused on achieving our targets as we build the largest lithium resource base in North America.
