Latrobe Magnesium (ASX:LMG) is targeting a definitive agreement within 60 business days to buy a 101-hectare site in South Carolina for a magnesium plant.
The company has signed a non-binding letter of intent (LOI) with the Colleton County Economic Development Corporation for about 101 hectares of heavy industrial land at the Colleton Megasite in Walterboro.
Latrobe plans to build a 50,000 tonnes per annum (tpa) primary magnesium metal plant there, following its 15 September 2026 announcement of the US strategy.
The LOI sets a US$5 million ($7.1 million) purchase price, payable in cash at closing. A US$500,000 deposit will go into escrow within 10 business days of signing and is refundable during due diligence.
Due diligence runs for 120 days and can be extended once by up to 60 days.
Latrobe expects to fund the deposit and early due diligence from sources tied to its Australian land holdings. It will cover the balance from US$30 million of project-level funding under negotiation to take the US project to a Feasibility Study.
The site sits next to the Salkehatchie railroad, with proposed Palmetto Railways access to the Port of Charleston, about 89km away by road.
Latrobe is negotiating a dedicated pier lease there for ferronickel slag imports. Interstate 95 is about 6.4km away, and about 800,000 workers live within 60 minutes.
Coastal Electric Cooperative services the site with a 115-kilovolt line. Dominion Energy has a 200mm gas line 5.6km away, and the City of Walterboro supplies water and wastewater.
The seller is expected to preserve adjoining land for expansion to 100,000tpa, with an option for Latrobe to acquire it.
Closing depends on approvals, incentives, and rail, port, utility, and road access. It is expected within 60 days of due diligence, ahead of a Final Investment Decision.
Chief Executive Officer Robert Stein says the site offers strong connectivity and room to grow.
“We now move quickly into due diligence and negotiation of the definitive agreement, alongside our port, utilities, offtake and funding workstreams,” Stein notes.
Latrobe Magnesium is an Australian critical minerals company commercialising a patented hydrometallurgical process to produce magnesium from industrial waste in Victoria.
Write to JC Villarba at Mining.com.au
Images: Latrobe Magnesium
