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Released August 13, 2024 | SUGAR LAND
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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Last week, Arizona Lithium Limited (Tempe, Arizona) announced the first production of lithium carbonate from its under-development Prairie lithium mine in southeast Saskatchewan. The announcement represents not only a milestone for Arizona Lithium, but also for Saskatchewan, as it is the first lithium to come from the province.
The lithium from the Prairie project comes from a pilot project at the site provided by ILiAD Technologies (Carlsbad, California), which operated at the site from late 2023 until February of this year. The mine uses direct lithium extraction (DLE) technology from lithium-containing brines. The DLE-produced eluent was shipped to Vancouver, where another refinery operated by Saltworks Technologies (Richmond, British Columbia) converted the material to battery-grade lithium carbonate.
Arizona Lithium is working to make the Saskatchewan mine into a fully operational commercial facility, having already drilled the first commercial well at the site's initial pad. "Our team remains focused on bringing Pad One at the Prairie project into production in 2025," said Paul Lloyd, Arizona Lithium managing director, in a press release last week. The prefeasibility study for Phase I of the project was released late last year and forecasts that the production from this phase would yield 6,000 tons per year of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) per year over a 20-year operational life.
Arizona Lithium has larger plans for the site, however. The company has obtained licenses to drill two wells at the Prairie facility's Pad 2, although full production from these wells could be years away. Arizona Lithium is aiming for three additional modules to be installed in Phase II, which would boost production from 6,000 tons per year to 24,000 tons per year of LCE. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Project Database can learn more by viewing the reports on Phase I and Phase II.
Arizona Lithium also is advancing with a project in its home state of Arizona, which it plans to operate in conjunction with the Prairie facility. In June, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced its approval for an exploration project related to Arizona Lithium's planned Big Sandy lithium mine near Wikieup, about 140 miles northwest of Phoenix. While the Prairie facility extracts lithium from brine using techniques related to oil and gas drilling, the Big Sandy mine will be an above-ground, open-pit mining operation that is expected to produce about 320,800 tons of LCE from an estimated 32.5 million tons of material over a 20-year mine life.
The BLM's decision paves the way for Arizona Lithium to drill and test up to 131 exploration holes across approximately 21 acres of BLM-managed public land to determine whether the full-scale mine would be economically feasible. However, the project was greeted with resistance last week, when the Hualapai Nation filed a suit against the BLM over the approval, claiming the agency did not properly evaluate the impact on the aquifer that feeds a spring that is sacred to the tribe. While the outcome of this potential stumbling block remains to be seen, construction on the Big Sandy mine could begin in a few years, putting the facility on track to begin production in 2030. Subscribers can learn more by viewing the project report.
Arizona Lithium's areas of operation, Saskatchewan and Arizona, also are being targeted by other developers for potential mine sites. Industrial Info is tracking four other active lithium-mining projects in Saskatchewan, among them projects being developed by Grounded Lithium Corporation (Calgary, Alberta) and EMP Metals Corporation (North Vancouver, British Columbia), both of which are involved in early planning for in-situ lithium mines in the province. Grounded Lithium's project near Coleville is aiming for production of 9,685 tons per year of LCE and 11,000 tons per year of lithium hydroxide over a 20-year mine life. EMP is aiming for 12,175 tons per year of battery-grade lithium carbonate over a 23-year mine life from a facility near Viewfield, production of which could begin in 2027. Subscribers can learn more by viewing the reports on the Grounded Lithium and EMP projects.
Lithium development in Arizona is a bit sparser, showing only one other active project in the state, which is located in the same region as Arizona Lithium's planned facility near Wikieup. That project belongs to Bradda Head Lithium Limited (Isle of Man, U.K.) and, over the mine's life, aims to extract 85,000 tons of LCE from 17 million tons of lithium-bearing claystone, as well as another 1 million tons from inferred deposits. Industrial Info places the startup of this mine well into the future, with an expected start date in the 2030s. Subscribers can click here to learn more.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI Database can click here to view reports for all of the projects discussed in this article and click here for the related plant profiles.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).
The lithium from the Prairie project comes from a pilot project at the site provided by ILiAD Technologies (Carlsbad, California), which operated at the site from late 2023 until February of this year. The mine uses direct lithium extraction (DLE) technology from lithium-containing brines. The DLE-produced eluent was shipped to Vancouver, where another refinery operated by Saltworks Technologies (Richmond, British Columbia) converted the material to battery-grade lithium carbonate.
Arizona Lithium is working to make the Saskatchewan mine into a fully operational commercial facility, having already drilled the first commercial well at the site's initial pad. "Our team remains focused on bringing Pad One at the Prairie project into production in 2025," said Paul Lloyd, Arizona Lithium managing director, in a press release last week. The prefeasibility study for Phase I of the project was released late last year and forecasts that the production from this phase would yield 6,000 tons per year of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) per year over a 20-year operational life.
Arizona Lithium has larger plans for the site, however. The company has obtained licenses to drill two wells at the Prairie facility's Pad 2, although full production from these wells could be years away. Arizona Lithium is aiming for three additional modules to be installed in Phase II, which would boost production from 6,000 tons per year to 24,000 tons per year of LCE. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Project Database can learn more by viewing the reports on Phase I and Phase II.
Arizona Lithium also is advancing with a project in its home state of Arizona, which it plans to operate in conjunction with the Prairie facility. In June, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced its approval for an exploration project related to Arizona Lithium's planned Big Sandy lithium mine near Wikieup, about 140 miles northwest of Phoenix. While the Prairie facility extracts lithium from brine using techniques related to oil and gas drilling, the Big Sandy mine will be an above-ground, open-pit mining operation that is expected to produce about 320,800 tons of LCE from an estimated 32.5 million tons of material over a 20-year mine life.
The BLM's decision paves the way for Arizona Lithium to drill and test up to 131 exploration holes across approximately 21 acres of BLM-managed public land to determine whether the full-scale mine would be economically feasible. However, the project was greeted with resistance last week, when the Hualapai Nation filed a suit against the BLM over the approval, claiming the agency did not properly evaluate the impact on the aquifer that feeds a spring that is sacred to the tribe. While the outcome of this potential stumbling block remains to be seen, construction on the Big Sandy mine could begin in a few years, putting the facility on track to begin production in 2030. Subscribers can learn more by viewing the project report.
Arizona Lithium's areas of operation, Saskatchewan and Arizona, also are being targeted by other developers for potential mine sites. Industrial Info is tracking four other active lithium-mining projects in Saskatchewan, among them projects being developed by Grounded Lithium Corporation (Calgary, Alberta) and EMP Metals Corporation (North Vancouver, British Columbia), both of which are involved in early planning for in-situ lithium mines in the province. Grounded Lithium's project near Coleville is aiming for production of 9,685 tons per year of LCE and 11,000 tons per year of lithium hydroxide over a 20-year mine life. EMP is aiming for 12,175 tons per year of battery-grade lithium carbonate over a 23-year mine life from a facility near Viewfield, production of which could begin in 2027. Subscribers can learn more by viewing the reports on the Grounded Lithium and EMP projects.
Lithium development in Arizona is a bit sparser, showing only one other active project in the state, which is located in the same region as Arizona Lithium's planned facility near Wikieup. That project belongs to Bradda Head Lithium Limited (Isle of Man, U.K.) and, over the mine's life, aims to extract 85,000 tons of LCE from 17 million tons of lithium-bearing claystone, as well as another 1 million tons from inferred deposits. Industrial Info places the startup of this mine well into the future, with an expected start date in the 2030s. Subscribers can click here to learn more.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI Database can click here to view reports for all of the projects discussed in this article and click here for the related plant profiles.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).
