International Lithium Corp. Options Blackstairs Project and Arranges Loan with Strategic Partner, Jiangxi Ganfeng Lithium Co. Ltd.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Oct. 2, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- International Lithium Corp. ("ILC" or the "Company") (ILC: TSX-V) is pleased to announce that, further to its news release on July 30, 2012, the Company has signed a formal option agreement (the "Option Agreement") with GFL International Co. Ltd ("GFL"), an investment company wholly owned by Jiangxi Ganfeng Lithium Co. Ltd. ("Ganfeng Lithium"), to earn up to a 100% interest in ILC's Blackstairs project (the "Blackstairs Project") in Ireland.
Under the terms of the Option Agreement:
GFL can earn a 51% interest (the "First Option") in the Blackstairs Project by:

1. incurring a minimum of $300,000 in exploration expenditures within 18 months of signing the Option Agreement (the "Effective Date"); and
2. paying ILC an aggregate of $500,000 in cash within one year from the Effective Date - $25,000 on the Effective Date and $475,000 on the first anniversary of the Effective Date.

GFL can earn an additional 24% interest (the "Second Option") in the Blackstairs Project by incurring up to an additional $10,000,000 in exploration expenditures or producing a positive Feasibility Study no later than 10 years from the Effective Date.
At any time during 6 months from the Effective Date, GFL can acquire a 100% interest in the Blackstairs Project by:

1. paying ILC an aggregate of $2,000,000 in cash - $400,000 within 6 months of the Effective Date and $1,600,000 on the date ILC's 100% interest in the Blackstairs Project has been transferred to GFL or a nominee of GFL; and
2. granting ILC a 2% net smelter royalty on the Blackstairs Project.

"This joint venture with Ganfeng Lithium will help to advance our highly prospective Blackstairs Lithium project in Ireland. It also allows for ILC to build a stronger working relationship with Ganfeng Lithium on a more diverse portfolio of exploration projects. We are confident that ILC will succeed in providing our strategic partners with a source for their operations, benefiting both companies' future growth and value." Kirill Klip, President, International Lithium Corp.
In addition to the "Option Agreement", GFL has signed a formal loan agreement (the "Loan Agreement") to lend ILC a total of $2,000,000 (the "Loan") to advance the Company's Mariana Lithium-Potassium Brine project in Argentina and for general corporate purposes.
Ganfeng Lithium will advance ILC $1,000,000 (the "First Advance") on or before October 12, 2012 with the second $1,000,000 to be advanced on or before October 31, 2012. The First Advance is convertible into common shares of the Company at a price of $0.08 per common share, during the first year of the Loan Agreement, and at a price of $0.10 per common share, during the second year of the Loan Agreement.  ILC will pay interest on the outstanding amount of the Loan at 10% per annum, payable quarterly.
Both the Option Agreement and the Loan Agreement are subject to approval by the Chinese Securities Regulatory and Exchange Commission, the TSX Venture Exchange and may also be subject to other Canadian regulatory approvals.
"With these agreements in hand, ILC can accelerate its operations and concentrate on the exploration and development of its Mariana Brine project in Argentina. Along with significant lithium content, this intriguing project contains some of the highest reported potassium grades from a salar in the country. ILC will seek to engage a strategic fertilizer producer to partner in the development of this potential potassium resource. As demonstrated with the lithium, the Company is dedicated to advancing its mineral properties with well-seasoned, supportive strategic partners." states Kirill Klip, President, International Lithium Corp.
"These transactions are in line with Ganfeng Lithium's long term goal to secure the raw material supply to meet the potential future demand on Lithium products" states Xiaoshen Wang, VP executive of Ganfeng Lithium.
In other business, due to current market conditions, Metron Capital Corp. has decided to terminate its option agreement on the Company's Forgan Lake property.
About Ganfeng Lithium Co. Ltd.
Ganfeng Lithium based in Xinyu, Jiangxi Province, China, is a professional producer of lithium products which has developed a comprehensive product chain, including lithium metal and alloys, inorganic and organic lithium chemicals, supplies a wide range of lithium products for primary and secondary lithium battery market, pharmaceutical and new material industries. Ganfeng Lithium's principal market is in China with international exports to Europe, Japan, the USA and India. Ganfeng Lithium was founded in the 2000 and listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange in August 2010, notably as the first publicly listed lithium company in China and has experienced rapid continuous growth over the last 11 years.
About the Blackstairs Project
The Blackstairs Project, comprised of eight mineral exploration licences totalling 292 square kilometres, is located 80 kilometres south of Dublin straddling the Counties of Carlow and Wicklow in Leinster, south-east Ireland. The Blackstairs Project encompasses an extensive NE-SW oriented 50 kilometre long rare metals pegmatite belt situated within the East Carlow Deformation Zone along the eastern side of the Leinster Granite. Approximately 19 significant lithium pegmatite occurrences have been discovered within the Blackstairs Project to date primarily as boulder trails with five buried pegmatites known through past trenching and drilling.
Due to the prevalent overburden cover and scarcity of outcrop, prospecting for lithium pegmatite boulders was the most successful exploration method utilised to identify priority target areas. The Aclare House occurrence, situated in the center of the Blackstairs Project was initially discovered through this exploration approach.
A pre-National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Minera Projectsl ("NI 43-101") historical resource of 570,000 tonnes grading 1.5% Li2O was reported at Aclare House. (A Qualified Person has not done sufficient work to classify the historical estimate as current mineral resources, the Company is not treating the historical estimate as current mineral resources and the historical estimate should not be relied upon.)
Other drilling highlights include 1.85% Li2O over 5.3 metres at Stranakelly and 1.66% Li2O over 9.4 metres at Moylisha.
The observed lithium bearing pegmatites and extensive boulder occurrences within the Blackstairs Project represent a highly prospective and underexplored region. In addition, the recent discovery of a high concentration of pegmatite boulders reporting grades exceeding 4% Li2O at Moylisha only serve to highlight the exploration potential of the Blackstairs Project.
John Harrop, P.Geo, is the Company's Qualified Person on the Blackstairs Project as required under NI 43-101 and has reviewed the technical information contained in this press release.
About International Lithium Corp.International Lithium Corp. is an exploration company with a focused portfolio of projects. A strong management team with personal ownership in the company compliments robust financial support from key stakeholders. A leading China based lithium product manufacturer, Jiangxi Ganfeng Lithium Co. Ltd., is a strategic partner and keystone investor in ILC.,. The Company currently has 9 active rare metals projects, including lithium-potash brines in Argentina and Nevada, and hard-rock pegmatites in Canada and Ireland.
The Company's primary focus is the Mariana lithium-potash brine project. Mariana is located in the renowned South American 'Lithium Belt' centred on the junction of Argentina, Bolivia and Chile that is host to the vast majority of global lithium resources, reserves and production. Mariana consists of a salar or 'salt lake' covering 160 square kilometres. The project strategically encompasses the entire mineral rich basin. The Mariana lithium-potash brine project ranks as one of the more prospective salars in the region.
Complementing the Company's lithium brine projects are rare metals pegmatite properties in Canada and Ireland. Despite the excellent accessibility of these hard-rock rare metals projects, there is limited past exploration and geochemical sampling for rare metals. There is a clear potential for exploration success and added value here as the Company strives to source rare metals to help meet the increasing demand through the growth in global technologies that utilize the rare metals suite of elements.
ILC's mandate is to increase shareholder value through aggressive advancement of its core projects and to source joint venture partners to expand the scope and diversify risk of its exploration effort.
On behalf of the Board of Directors,
Kirill KlipPresident, International Lithium Corp.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Statements in this press release other than purely historical information, historical estimates should not be relied upon, including statements relating to the Company's future plans and objectives or expected results, are forward-looking statements. News release contains certain "Forward-Looking Statements" within the meaning of Section 21E of the United States Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking statements are based on numerous assumptions and are subject to all of the risks and uncertainties inherent in the Company's business, including risks inherent in resource exploration and development. As a result, actual results may vary materially from those described in the forward-looking statements.                             
620 - 650 West Georgia StreetVancouver, British ColumbiaV6B 4N9, Canada Voice: (604) 687-7551Fax: (604) 687-4670 1-800-667-4470E-mail: info@internationallithium.com
SOURCE International Lithium Corp.

High-Grade Lithium Boulder Field Discovered On International Lithium Corp.'s Rare Metals Blackstairs Project, Ireland

Image by kid_wendy via Flickr

Today 

International Lithium Corp. ("ILC" or the "Company") (ILC:TSXV) is pleased to announce the Company has discovered a high grade lithium, high density pegmatite boulder field on the Company's 100% owned rare metals Blackstairs project ("Property") located 80 kilometres south of Dublin, Ireland.





 



Key Point Summary:

--  High grade pegmatite boulder field discovered in a recently
        exposed area at Moylisha;
    --  Located 500m along trend to the southwest of past pegmatite
        exploration;
    --  4.59%, 3.45% and 3.27% Li2O grab samples collected*; and
    --  Indicates a potentially sizable, yet to be discovered buried
        pegmatite body.

"The high-grade lithium pegmatite boulder field identified at Moylisha significantly reinforces the potential to discover buried pegmatite bodies on the Property," states Mike Sieb, President of the Company. "These results, from a cursory investigation, far exceeded expectations and dramatically raise the directive for further work."

Moylisha Discovery
A preliminary reconnaissance of the Property performed by Aurum Exploration Services, the Company's geo-services consultant for the project, discovered within a 250 x 250 metre area a high density distribution of pegmatite boulders. This area is in a recently harvested section of a tree farm in which the pegmatite boulders were previously hidden from view. Four samples (MOY2-5)* were collected in this new area with three of the samples grading better than 3% Li2O and the highest returning 4.59% Li2O representing greater than a 50% spodumene content.

This newly identified lithium pegmatite boulder area is situated 500m to the southwest and along the district trend from past exploration activities at Moylisha, where five drill holes totalling 212 metres were drilled revealing a pegmatite between 5 and 10 metres in width and a best intersection grading 1.66% Li2O over 9.4m.
The observed high grade lithium bearing pegmatites and extensive boulder occurrence within such a small area represents a highly prospective and unexplored zone along strike from a previously identified pegmatite and specifically indicates a potentially sizable, yet to be discovered buried pegmatite body.
The discovery was made during a preliminary exploration programme that included boulder mapping at six of the known lithium prospects and the initiation of exploration for additional occurrences within the Property. A total of 21 varied samples were collected across the Property and of the 8 spodumene bearing pegmatite samples collected, all returned greater than 1% Li2O. The table below lists the 8 highlighted grab samples.
Table 1: Highlighted Grab Samples*

Prospect     Sample  Li2O%

Moylisha     MOY10   4.74

Moylisha     MOY5    4.59

Moylisha     MOY4    3.45

Moylisha     MOY3    3.27

Moylisha     MOY2    1.21

Aclare House AX10501 3.93

Aclare House AH01    1.71

Stranakelly  AX10502 1.88

*Grab samples are by definition selective and are unlikely to represent average grades on the property.
Grab sample MOY10 was collected in proximity to the past exploration activity at Moylisha.
The 21 samples were analysed at OMAC Laboratories Ltd., Loughrea, Galway County, Ireland. OMAC is part of the ALS Group, a recognized and certified international firm for geochemical analysis and assays. Samples were prepared by OMAC and analysed using ICP-AES following multi-acid digestion.
Blackstairs Project
The Blackstairs project, comprised of eight mineral exploration licences totalling 292 square kilometres, is located 80 km south of Dublin straddling the Counties of Carlow and Wicklow in Leinster, south-east Ireland. The Property encompasses an extensive NE-SW oriented 50 kilometre long rare metals pegmatite belt situated within the East Carlow Deformation Zone along the eastern side of the Leinster Granite. Approximately 19 significant lithium pegmatite occurrences have been discovered within the Property to date primarily as boulder trails with five buried pegmatites known through past trenching and drilling.
Lithium bearing pegmatite occurrences were first reported in the area in 1970. In the period through to 1977, Irish Base Metals carried out a preliminary exploration program comprising prospecting, sampling, trenching and geophysical surveys culminating in 47 short boreholes totalling 2,300 metres at 4 of the 19 lithium pegmatite occurrences over a number of seasons.
Due to the prevalent overburden cover and scarcity of outcrop, prospecting for lithium pegmatite boulders was the most successful exploration method utilised to identify priority target areas. The relative location, size and quantity of pegmatite boulders within the dry stone field boundaries provided a reliable indication for the approximate position of buried pegmatites. The Aclare House occurrence, situated in the center of the Property, has witnessed the most exploration activity on the Property and was initially discovered through this exploration approach.
Thirty-three short drill holes totalling 1,703m were drilled at Aclare House. A pegmatite body up to 20 metres wide and traced for more than 400 metres along strike was delineated and a pre-NI43-101 historical resource of 570,000 tonnes grading 1.5% Li2O was reported. (A Qualified Person has not done sufficient work to classify the historical estimate as current mineral resources, the issuer is not treating the historical estimate as current mineral resources and the historical estimate should not be relied upon.)
Five drill holes, for a total of 163 metres, were drilled at the Stranakelly occurrence situated proximal to the northeast Property boundary. Lithium-bearing pegmatite mineralization was intersected in four of the holes with hole STK3 grading 1.85% Li2O over 5.3 metres.
Five drill holes, for a total of 212 metres, were drilled at the Moylisha occurrence situated approximately 10 kms northeast of Aclare House. The width of the pegmatite body encountered varied between 5 and 10 metres with one hole grading 1.66% Li2O over 9.4 metres.
Four drill holes, for a total of 280 metres, were drilled at the Seskinnamadra occurrence situated approximately 8 kms southwest of Aclare House. The narrow pegmatite intersections reported from the drilling does not explain the significant frequency and size of the lithium pegmatite boulders mapped in the area that suggests a potentially large yet to be discovered buried pegmatite body.
The observed lithium bearing pegmatites and extensive boulder occurrences within the Property represent a highly prospective and underexplored region. In addition, the recent discovery of a high concentration of pegmatite boulders reporting grades exceeding 4% Li2O at Moylisha only serve to highlight the exploration potential of the Property.
John Harrop, P.Geo, is the company's Qualified Person on the project as required under NI 43-101 and has reviewed the technical information contained in this press release.
ABOUT INTERNATIONAL LITHIUM CORP
International Lithium Corp. is an international rare metals mineral exploration company with an outstanding portfolio of projects, strong management ownership, robust financial support and a strategic partner, Jiangxi Ganfeng Lithium Co. Ltd., a leading China based lithium product manufacturer, as a keystone investor.
ILC currently has 9 active rare metals projects, well balanced between lithium brines in Argentina and Nevada and hard-rock pegmatites in Canada and Ireland. The Company's primary focus is the Mariana lithium brine project, a salar or 'salt lake,' covering an expansive 160 square kilometres and strategically encompassing the entire basin. Mariana is located in the renowned South American 'Lithium Belt' centred on the junction of Argentina, Bolivia and Chile that is host to the vast majority of global lithium resources, reserves and production. The Mariana lithium brine project ranks as one of the more prospective salars in the region.
Complementing the Company's lithium brine projects are the rare metals pegmatite properties. The key characteristics shared by the hard-rock rare metals projects are their limited past exploration, excellent accessibility, limited assaying for rare metals, clear potential for additional exploration to add project value and development potential to meet the global technological growth in demand for the rare metals suite of elements.
International Lithium Corp.'s mandate is to increase shareholder value through aggressive advancement of its core projects and to source joint venture partners to expand the scope and diversify risk of its exploration effort.
On behalf of the Board,
Mike SiebPresident – International Lithium Corp.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Statements in this press release other than purely historical information, historical estimates should not be relied upon, including statements relating to the Company's future plans and objectives or expected results, are forward-looking statements. News release contains certain "Forward-Looking Statements" within the meaning of Section 21E of the United States Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking statements are based on numerous assumptions and are subject to all of the risks and uncertainties inherent in the Company's business, including risks inherent in resource exploration and development. As a result, actual results may vary materially from those described in the forward-looking statements.
Stock Symbol: ILC:TSXVShares CUSIP: #459820 10 6Warrants Symbol: ILC.WTWarrant CUSIP: #459820 11 4
620 - 650 West Georgia StreetVancouver, British ColumbiaV6B 4N9, Canada Voice: (604) 687-7551Fax: (604) 687-4670 1-800-667-4470E-mail: info@internationallithium.com Website: http://www.internationallithium.com
SOURCE International Lithium Corp.
To view this news release in HTML formatting, please use the following URL: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/February2012/01/c8334.html
SOURCE: International Lithium Corp.

http://www.internationallithium.com

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