The really exciting thing about ORE isn't so much the amount of lithium they have, but the brine chemistry.
Brine Chemistry
The brine chemistry is very attractive.
* The average lithium grade at 800g/kl is similar to the Hombre Muerto Operation and approximately double the grade of the Silver Peak Operation and the Rincon Salar.
* The Mg:Li ratio is also low (which is desirable for processing) at around 2.8 compared to Atacama , Rincon and Uyuni at 6.4, 8.6 and 19 respectively. Only Silver Peak and Hombre Muerto are lower at 1.4.
* The sulphate levels are such that soda ash may not be required for magnesium or calcium removal which is of considerable cost benefit.
The grade distribution throughout the deposit indicates the potential for the first 5 to 10 years of an operation to benefit from grades significantly higher than the average grade.
I have no idea why people would invest in spodumene deposits. High grade brine deposits are the standouts and will be where the real money is made long-term due to their long-life and low costs of production (including potash credits).