Sigma Lithium stock rises after court upholds mining licenses

Sigma Lithium Corporation's shares surged over 4% in after-hours trading after a Federal Court of Appeals upheld the company's environmental licenses. This decision lifted a previous suspension by a local federal judge, which would have halted mining-industrial operations. The court, in a ruling by Senior Federal Judge Mônica Sifuentes, acknowledged that a prolonged stoppage would have significant negative economic consequences for the Vale do Jequitinhonha region.

Sigma Lithium reaffirmed its production guidance, aiming to scale annualized lithium oxide concentrate production to 330,000 tonnes by the end of 2027. The company maintains its existing Mine 1 capacity and Cleantech Industrial Plant capacity, indicating no need for additional capacity to meet this target. The court recognized Sigma Lithium's economic importance to the region, where it supports about 19,000 direct and indirect jobs and affects around 80,000 family members across 12 municipalities.

The original suspension ruling was connected to a lawsuit filed by Ngolo, an association representing local Quilombola communities. However, the government official registry showed no Quilombola heritage descendants living within a 12 km radius of Sigma Lithium's Grota do Cirilo Project, where operations began in 2023. Sigma Lithium's Grota do Cirilo operation is one of the largest lithium production sites in the Americas, with the capacity to produce 330,000 tonnes of lithium oxide concentrate annually.