Arizona Tribune - HMW Phase 1 Construction Complete - On Track for First Production

PERTH, AU / ACCESS Newswire / March 31, 2026 / Galan Lithium Limited (ASX:GLN) (Galan or the Company) is pleased to advise that construction at its 100% owned Hombre Muerto West (HMW) Project in Catamarca Province, Argentina, located within the world-renowned lithium triangle, is now complete.

Construction Complete, First Production and Cash Flow Imminent

Phase 1 construction activities at HMW have now been completed, marking a significant milestone in the development of the Project. All major infrastructure, including the nanofiltration plant, evaporation ponds and associated process facilities, have been installed and Galan's transition from lithium developer to producer is nearly complete.

With construction now complete, the Project has transitioned into the testing and commissioning phase. Electrical and mechanical testing programs are currently underway to ensure operational readiness. Upon successful completion of testing activities, the Company will transition to wet commissioning using raw brine followed by pre-concentrated brine from HMW's evaporation ponds. This stage will enable calibration and optimisation of the processing circuit ahead of steady-state operations.

The strong technical collaboration between Galan and Authium, established following execution of the Offtake and Operating Agreement in April 2025, continues to support disciplined, safe and efficient execution as HMW advances through commissioning.

Galan has accumulated a substantial brine inventory of circa 10,000 t LCE in its evaporation ponds, positioning the Company to transition into processing at scale. The nanofiltration plant has been designed with flexibility to support production beyond the recently expanded 5,200 tpa LCE Phase 1 capacity.

Planned HMW lithium chloride concentrate production will initially start with an annualised production rate of 4,000 tpa LCE. Pond construction works at HMW for the expanded 5,200 tpa LCE production rate will commence soon, targeting an uplift to production rates in H1 2027. Galan has the construction permits for Phase 2 (21 ktpa LCE) and plans for low-risk, staged production growth over four phases (60 ktpa LCE), demonstrating the scale and potential significance of HMW as supplier into the global lithium market.

Galan's Managing Director, Juan Pablo (JP) Vargas de la Vega, said:

"The completion of Phase 1 construction at HMW is a defining step in our transition to lithium production and represents a major milestone for one of the world's most scalable, low-cost lithium projects.

With construction behind us and a substantial brine inventory ready to process, we are focused on a safe and efficient commissioning campaign.

Completion of construction strongly reflects the execution capability of our team and partners. It was also facilitated by Galan's Argentine RIGI incentive regime, which aided the importation of capital equipment during construction. Galan is on the cusp of becoming the next ASX-listed lithium producer and delivering first cash flow. I wish to thank all shareholders for their support on getting us to this milestone."

The Galan Board has authorised this release.

About Galan

Galan Lithium Limited (ASX:GLN) is an ASX-listed lithium exploration and development business. Galan's flagship assets comprise two world-class lithium brine projects, HMW and Candelas, located on the Hombre Muerto Salar in Argentina, within South America's 'lithium triangle'. Galan is distinguished by:

• The size of its mineral resource. HMW is placed within the top 10 producing or development lithium projects globally;^[1]

• The purity of its mineral resource. The HMW mineral resource has the lowest impurity profile of any published lithium brine resource in Argentina;

• Positioning on the cost curve. When in production, HMW is profiled to be in the first quartile of the industry cost curve;^[2]

• Near term production with permitted expansion. Galan is on track for first lithium chloride production in 2026, has the construction permits to expand HMW to 21 ktpa LCE and has potential to expand production up to 60 ktpa LCE in HMW Phases 3 and 4;

• The RIGI. The RIGI is a large scale investment framework in Argentina which provides income tax benefits, 30 years of fiscal stability and a range of other financial benefits. Galan and Rio Tinto are the only recipients of the RIGI within the lithium industry in Argentina; and

• Exploration licences at Greenbushes South in Western Australia, close to and just south of the Tier 1 Greenbushes Lithium Mine.

View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire

A.Moore--AT