First Phosphate Highlights Quebec LFP Battery Supply Chain at Noble Conference

Key Points

• First Phosphate is positioning its Quebec Bégin-Lamarche project as a source of high-purity phosphate and purified phosphoric acid for North American LFP battery supply chains, rather than fertilizer markets. Testing reportedly shows over 90% of feedstock can be converted into purified phosphoric acid.
• The project’s preliminary economic assessment cited a CAD$2.1 billion NPV, 37% IRR and 2.9-year payback, with a projected 23-year mine life. The company says recent drilling increased the indicated resource by 378%.
• First Phosphate expects to complete its feasibility study by Q1 2027 and targets production by late 2029 or 2030. It reports CAD$21.5 million in Canadian government support, additional potential capital support from Denmark and Switzerland, and offtake agreements covering 200,000 tonnes per year of phosphate concentrate and 60,000 tonnes per year of phosphoric acid.

First Phosphate NASDAQ: PHOS is advancing its Bégin-Lamarche igneous phosphate project in Quebec toward a feasibility study, positioning the project as a potential source of high-purity phosphate for lithium iron phosphate, or LFP, batteries, Chief Executive Officer and Director John Passalacqua said at Noble Capital Markets’ Emerging Growth Virtual Equity Conference.

Passalacqua said the company is focused on phosphate used in battery supply chains rather than fertilizer markets. He described LFP as a growing battery technology used not only in electric vehicles but also in stationary energy storage, data centers, robotics, marine uses, small mobility products, telecommunications and other applications.

According to Passalacqua, phosphate represents about 61% of an LFP battery cathode by composition, compared with 35% iron and 4% lithium. He argued that Western supplies of purified phosphoric acid are constrained because much of the material is currently produced as a byproduct of fertilizer-oriented sedimentary phosphate processing.

Igneous phosphate and project characteristics

Passalacqua said Bégin-Lamarche’s igneous anorthosite-hosted phosphate differs from sedimentary phosphate because of its relatively consistent mineralogy and low levels of contaminants. The company believes this material can produce a phosphate concentrate exceeding 40% P2O5 and can be converted at a high rate into purified phosphoric acid for LFP battery applications.

He said testing indicates that more than 90% of the project’s phosphate feedstock can be converted into purified phosphoric acid. The high purity of the material could reduce sulfuric-acid use by approximately 33% during processing, he said, while producing cleaner gypsum byproducts that may be recycled into agricultural or building products.

The open-pit deposit is located in Quebec’s Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region, approximately 2 kilometers from a highway and electricity infrastructure, according to Passalacqua. He said the project is near local communities and an established industrial workforce, as well as rail and port infrastructure serving North American and international markets.

First Phosphate recently completed 50,000 meters of drilling at the property, which Passalacqua said increased the indicated resource by 378% and demonstrated continuity and homogeneity in the mineralization.

• The company cited a preliminary economic assessment showing a CAD$2.1 billion net present value, a 37% internal rate of return and a 2.9-year payback period.
• Passalacqua said the project has a projected 23-year mine life and a strip ratio of 1.5-to-1.
• He said the deposit is royalty-free and remains open at depth and along parts of its sides.

Battery supply-chain efforts

Passalacqua said First Phosphate has worked with several companies to produce LFP battery cells using North American-sourced critical minerals. He named Prayon for phosphoric acid production, GKN Hoeganaes for iron phosphate precursor production, Century Lithium for lithium, Nouveau Monde Graphite for graphite material and Ultion for battery technology.

The resulting battery cells were charged and discharged 2,000 times and performed comparably with commercially available batteries, according to Passalacqua. He said the work validated a potential North American supply chain using commercial processes rather than research-and-development-stage technology.

The company’s role in that supply chain is expected to center on mining and phosphoric acid production, while it seeks partners and customers farther downstream, he said.

Funding, offtake and timetable

Passalacqua said First Phosphate has begun its feasibility study and expects to complete it by the first quarter of 2027. He said permitting and environmental work is targeted for the second and third quarters of 2027, followed by a final investment decision in late 2027 or early 2028. The company is targeting mine production by the end of 2029 or in 2030.

He said the Canadian government has provided CAD$21.5 million in non-refundable, non-dilutive contributions to support work through the feasibility stage. Passalacqua also said Denmark and Switzerland have each offered approximately $200 million of capital-expenditure support, with Denmark providing a letter of intent for roughly CAD$275 million. He characterized the government support as potentially covering nearly 85% of mine capital expenditures.

Passalacqua said First Phosphate has approximately CAD$25 million in its own funds, in addition to Canadian government funding, and is fully funded through feasibility, permitting and the final investment decision stage. He added that the company is debt-free and that management and directors own about 20% of its shares.

On commercial arrangements, Passalacqua said First Phosphate has definitive, bankable offtake agreements for 200,000 metric tons per year of phosphate concentrate and 60,000 metric tons per year of phosphoric acid. The preliminary plan contemplates annual production of 900,000 metric tons of phosphate concentrate, with approximately 500,000 metric tons eventually intended for the company’s own phosphoric acid plant.

About First Phosphate (NASDAQ:PHOS)

First Phosphate Corp. is a Canadian mineral development company focused on building an integrated supply chain for lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries. The company's activities include the exploration and development of phosphate mineral properties, the production of purified phosphoric acid and phosphoric salts, and the eventual manufacture of LFP cathode active material for use in lithium-ion batteries.

First Phosphate's mineral projects are located in Quebec's Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region, an area with established hydroelectric power, transportation infrastructure and industrial resources.

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