Oz Lithium Corporation announced evaluation work has begun at the Laguna Santa Maria Project, located in the northwest territory of the Province of Salta, Argentina. The project is fully permitted and licensed for the production of sodium carbonate, commonly referred to as soda ash, and is comprised of 500 hectares. The project has excellent road access, being approximately 60 kilometers from the town of Tolar Grande.

Geo Brand, a Salta Argentina based technical firm are now on site completing a Vertical Electrical Sounding survey over the project area. A total of 8 transects are being completed and are comprised of 15 sounding points every 500 meters per transect. The intent of the program is to confirm the depth potential of the soda ash deposit in relation to the visible surface expression.

Eleven liquid samples and fifteen solid samples have been collected at site by the Oz lithium exploration team. The samples have been collected under the supervision of William Feyerabend, CPG, a Consulting Geologist and Qualified Person under NI 43-101. All samples will be forwarded to Alex Stewart Laboratories (ISO Certified) of Mendoza, Argentina, for chemical analysis and quality evaluation.

Soda ash is the trade name for sodium carbonate, a chemical refined from the mineral trona or sodium carbonate bearing brines (both referred to as "natural soda ash") or manufactured from one of several chemical processes (referred to as "synthetic soda ash"). The US Geological Survey reports US exports of soda ash to Argentina for 2022 at 165,000 tonnes valued at USD 48 million. Soda ash is a "critical reagent" in the production of lithium carbonate with the process requiring two tonnes of soda ash for every tonne of lithium carbonate produced.

As reported in La Nacion (an online Argentina News Paper) on January 30, 2023, there is an insufficient local supply of soda ash and importing it has various issues and challenges for present and future lithium carbonate producers in Argentina. Management believes a first mover advance exists for the Company with the Laguna Santa Maria Project. Much of the current Sodium carbonate production in Argentina is required by the glass industry.

Lithium carbonate producers must import their requirements of sodium carbonate from the world market. The potential demand for soda ash is significant given the expanding lithium production in Argentina.