Atlantic Lithium (ASX: A11; US-OTC: ALLIF) has halted activity at its Ewoyaa project in Ghana after a fatal accident on Tuesday.
According to the company, authorities have been notified and an investigation is underway to establish the circumstances that led to the incident.
Ewoyaa will be Ghana's first lithium operation.
The miner secured in October a 15-year permit for the project.
Half of the lithium produced at Ewoyaa will be sent to a refinery of U.S.-based Piedmont Lithium (NASDAQ: PLL; ASX: PLL), which is the Australian firm's second-largest shareholder and has agreed to provide most of the funds for building the mine.
Atlantic Lithium aims to produce a total of 3.6 million tonnes of spodumene concentrate, or 350,000 tonnes annually, over 12 years from the site. That would make it the world's 10th-biggest lithium project, according to the company.
Shares of Atlantic Lithium fell 4% to A36? by mid-afternoon on Wednesday, giving the company a market capitalization of ?123.7 million (US$158.8 million).