By: OrePulse

African Critical Elements Ltd. (ACE) acquired all of the equity in Lepidico (Canada) Inc., gaining an indirect 80 percent interest in the fully permitted Karibib lithium, rubidium and caesium project in Namibia, the company said.

The transaction also saw ACE take over the entirety of Lepidico Canada's secured debt from its existing lender, according to the company. Lepidico Canada holds its stake in the Namibian project through a finance subsidiary, Lepidico (Mauritius) Ltd., which in turn owns 80 percent of Lepidico Chemicals Namibia (Pty) Ltd., referred to as Lepidico Namibia. The remaining 20 percent belongs to Huni-Urib, a Namibian minority shareholder.

Namibia's Competition Commission approved the merger in October 2026, following a public hearing held in September 2026, clearing the way for the deal to close.

Lepidico Namibia owns the Karibib project, which is covered by mining license ML204 at the Rubicon and Helikon sites, as well as exploration license EPL5439, for which ACE has filed a renewal application. The exploration ground is also considered prospective for tantalum-bearing pegmatites and gold. ACE said drilling continued within EPL5439 in mid-2026, targeting lithium and gold near Karibib.

John Wisbey, ACE's executive chairman, described the purchase as the company's first deal but a major one. "This acquisition is ACE's first transaction but a very significant one," Wisbey said, adding that ACE had thereby gained a lithium, rubidium and caesium asset that reached the definitive feasibility study stage under the JORC Code in 2020 and saw a substantially upgraded mineral resource estimate announced in January 2023.

Wisbey said the project had already attracted roughly 13 million British pounds of investment over the past decade and, with further funding, could reach production within three years. He said ACE intends to revive the long-dormant site, creating employment opportunities in Namibia and, over time, generating tax revenue from exports, jobs and eventual profits.

ACE plans to refresh Karibib's 2020 feasibility study and related studies conducted between 2020 and 2022, with domestic concentration of lepidolite ore inside Namibia set as the project's first stage of development, the company said.

Wisbey added that ACE was looking forward to a strengthened relationship with Huni-Urib and to working closely with Namibian authorities and the surrounding community. He said the deal left ACE and its stakeholders well positioned for a rise in the lithium market and made the company one of the leading global players in rubidium, alongside what he called some of the most significant caesium interests held by any non-Chinese company.

The Karibib project previously belonged to Lepidico Ltd., the former Australian-listed company that commissioned the 2020 feasibility study. Lepidico had acquired the project through Desert Lion Energy, a Toronto Venture Exchange-listed company it bought in 2019 in a transaction valued at about 22.9 million Australian dollars, or roughly 12.2 million British pounds. Lepidico has since invested a further 12.1 million Australian dollars, or about 6.4 million British pounds, in the project, excluding central group overhead costs.