Franklin Project PEA: $5.00B NPV, 24% IRR
Standard Lithium Ltd.'s Franklin Project in East Texas, United States (Hopkins, Franklin, and Titus Counties, Texas) has a Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) outlining an after-tax NPV of $5.00B and an after-tax IRR of 24%. The mine plan runs 20 years at about 70000 TPA lithium carbonate per year.
Standard Lithium Ltd.'s Franklin Project has reported Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) results for the lithium project in East Texas, United States (Hopkins, Franklin, and Titus Counties, Texas). The study headlines an after-tax net present value of $5.00B at a 8% discount rate. It reflects Standard Lithium Ltd.'s (SLI.V) latest disclosed economics for the asset.
Economics. The after-tax NPV is $5.00B using a 8% discount rate. After-tax IRR is 24%. All-in sustaining costs are pegged at 4226 USD/t. Economics are based on Assumes $22,400/t lithium price and a 20-year modelled operating life.
Production and mine plan. Life of mine is 20 years. Average annual production is approximately 70000 TPA lithium carbonate. Average head grade is 562 mg/L initial lithium grade at start of production; 515 mg/L average grade over plant operating life.
Resources and ownership. The company holds a 55% interest in the project.
These figures are extracted from Standard Lithium Ltd.'s technical disclosures and reflect the most recent PEA on file. Compare this project against other developers and producers in our project economics database, and always verify the numbers against the original technical report before making any investment decision.
Reserves & Resources
| Category | Tonnage | Grade | Contained |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indicated | — | — | 1.8Mt LCE; 2.7Mt bromide |
| Inferred | — | — | 15.1Mt potash |
Our Analysis
- IRR after-tax
- 24%
higher than 28% of 18 projects we track
- NPV after-tax
- $5.00B
higher than 100% of 21 projects we track
- Mine life
- 20yrs
- Discount rate
- 8%
- Study price assumption
- Assumes $22,400/t lithium price and a 20-year modelled operating life
The valuation disconnect here is stark: a $5.00B after-tax NPV against a US$595M market cap puts the project at roughly 8.4x the company's entire equity value. That gap can be read two ways. Either the market has not yet priced in a 20-year lithium asset of this scale, or it is skeptical that a small-cap developer can finance and permit a project whose NPV dwarfs its own size. Both readings deserve equal weight; neither resolves into a simple 'undervalued'.
The 20-year mine life is the anchor of that NPV, and it cuts both ways. A two-decade operating horizon suggests durability and justifies a long-dated valuation, but it also loads the return case onto a lithium price assumption of $22,400/t held flat for the full modelled life. That is a demanding assumption for a scoping-level PEA, which carries a capital estimate band of roughly plus or minus 50% and may rely on inferred resources. The study's 24% after-tax IRR ranks in the lower half of the 18 lithium projects we track, though it clears the roughly 15% threshold developers typically need to attract project finance. This company is not a single-asset junior straining for its first build; it is one of three projects we track, which broadens the financing picture.
East Texas is a mining-friendly US jurisdiction, a genuine quality signal, but the practical hurdle remains the funding gap. A project worth several times the company's market cap cannot be quietly financed, and permitting a large lithium operation in a populated region carries its own execution risk. The NPV rank, higher than all 21 lithium projects we track, suggests the resource is real. The question that decides this one is whether the company can convert a scoping-level study into a financed, permitted build before the market's skepticism, or its patience, wins out.
Our take, benchmarked against the project economics in the Mining Stocks database. Figures are estimates drawn from company technical reports — not investment advice; always verify against the source filing.