Bradda Head lets solar developer build on part of Pennsylvania lithium lease
Published: 02:18 04 Aug 2026 EDT
Bradda Head Lithium Ltd (AIM:BHL) has agreed to let a solar developer build a commercial power facility on part of its Pennsylvania brine lease while retaining its underlying mineral rights.
The AIM-listed, North America-focused lithium developer said its wholly owned US subsidiary, Zenolith (USA), had signed an accommodation agreement with PA Land Acquisitions, which trades as SunShare.
The deal covers roughly 16 acres of a 136-acre mineral lease in Slippery Rock Township, Lawrence County.
An accommodation agreement is a contract that allows two parties to use the same land for different purposes, in this case solar generation above ground and lithium extraction below it.
Bradda Head will receive an initial payment of $5,000 within 10 business days, with a further $20,000 option payment due when SunShare formally notifies the company that it intends to proceed.
SunShare can extend the agreement for up to five additional 12-month periods if development has not started, paying $5,000 each time.
Once construction begins, the solar developer takes on the annual rental payments under the brine lease, currently $1,339 a year through 2027 and rising to $2,421 from 2028 if an extension is exercised.
The agreement lapses if the solar project fails to reach commercial operations within three years of that notice being issued.
SunShare must coordinate its activities to avoid materially interfering with any future brine operations, and Bradda Head keeps emergency access rights along with limited entry to the solar site where reasonably necessary.
The company said the arrangement preserved its optionality for future lithium-brine exploration in Pennsylvania.
Bradda Head also suggested the solar garden could eventually supply renewable power to a direct lithium extraction pilot plant on the site.
Direct lithium extraction, or DLE, uses chemical processes to pull lithium from brine without the large evaporation ponds used in conventional production.
Executive chair Ian Stalker said the deal transferred certain rental obligations to SunShare while demonstrating a practical approach to managing complementary land uses.
