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Released June 20, 2023 | SUGAR LAND
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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Lithium demand has surged in recent years, as the alkali metal is essential to the development of battery technology for clean energy, especially in electric vehicles (EVs). While the traditional mining method to extract lithium often has proven environmentally hazardous, a new approach is capturing the Metals & Minerals Industry's attention: Direct lithium extraction (DLE), which selectively removes lithium compounds from brines and rocks, significantly reducing water usage and, in some cases, the need for evaporation ponds. Industrial Info is tracking more than $9.5 billion worth of active and proposed mining projects across the U.S. and Canada that aim to use DLE to procure lithium.
Click on the image at right for a graph detailing the top 10 parent companies for projects across the U.S. and Canada set to use DLE technology, by total investment value.
DLE "has the potential to significantly increase the supply of lithium from brine projects (much like shale did for oil), nearly doubling lithium production on higher recoveries and improving project returns--though with the added bonus of offering ESG [environmental, social and governance]/sustainability benefits, while also widening, rather than steepening, the lithium cost curve," analysts from Goldman Sachs Group Incorporated (NYSE:GS) (New York, New York) said in an equity research report published in April.
The technology remains in its early development phase; so far, no DLE company has been able to produce lithium on a large scale without incorporating evaporation ponds into the process. But earlier this year, E3 Lithium Limited (Calgary, Alberta) began site preparation for a lithium brine-processing pilot plant in Bowden, Alberta, as part of a prefeasibility study for its proposed, commercial-scale Clearwater lithium-processing plant. E3 plans to test the viability of its own DLE technology to extract lithium extraction and produce battery-grade lithium hydroxide, in hopes of eventually producing 20,000 tons per year at the commercial-scale plant.
E3 is developing the Clearwater project with support from Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) (Irving, Texas) subsidiary Imperial Oil Limited (Calgary, Alberta). Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Metals & Minerals Project Database can read detailed project reports on E3's pilot plant and proposed commercial-scale plant.
Controlled Thermal Resources Incorporated (Imperial, California) is developing its Hell's Kitchen Lithium Brine Extraction Plant in Calipatria, California, which is designed to use DLE to recover lithium concentrate from the company's planned geothermal power plant nearby. The project, which aims to produce 25,000 tons per year of lithium carbonate equivalent by 2025, has picked up support from two key players in the auto industry: General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) (GM) (Detroit, Michigan) and Stellantis N.V. (NYSE:STLA) (Amsterdam, Netherlands), both of which signed offtake agreements in 2021 to supply their EV factories. Subscribers can learn more from Industrial Info's project report.
Compass Minerals (NYSE:CMP) (Overland Park, Kansas) is using technology provided by EnergySource LLC (San Diego, California) to develop its East Side and West Side brine facilities in Ogden, Utah, which will produce 11,000 and 24,000 tons per year, respectively, of battery-grade lithium carbonate over a 60-year mine life. Subscribers can read detailed reports on the East Side and West Side projects.
LG Energy Solution (Seoul, South Korea) agreed to purchase lithium carbonate from Compass for a six-year term beginning in 2025, while Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) (Dearborn, Michigan) signed a binding, five-year supply agreement for up to 40% of the product once production begins.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI project and plant databases can click here for a full list of detailed reports for projects mentioned in this article, and click here for a full list of related plant profiles.
Subscribers can click here for a full list of reports for active and proposed mining projects across the U.S. and Canada that aim to use DLE to procure lithium.
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) platform 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 more than 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).
Click on the image at right for a graph detailing the top 10 parent companies for projects across the U.S. and Canada set to use DLE technology, by total investment value.DLE "has the potential to significantly increase the supply of lithium from brine projects (much like shale did for oil), nearly doubling lithium production on higher recoveries and improving project returns--though with the added bonus of offering ESG [environmental, social and governance]/sustainability benefits, while also widening, rather than steepening, the lithium cost curve," analysts from Goldman Sachs Group Incorporated (NYSE:GS) (New York, New York) said in an equity research report published in April.
The technology remains in its early development phase; so far, no DLE company has been able to produce lithium on a large scale without incorporating evaporation ponds into the process. But earlier this year, E3 Lithium Limited (Calgary, Alberta) began site preparation for a lithium brine-processing pilot plant in Bowden, Alberta, as part of a prefeasibility study for its proposed, commercial-scale Clearwater lithium-processing plant. E3 plans to test the viability of its own DLE technology to extract lithium extraction and produce battery-grade lithium hydroxide, in hopes of eventually producing 20,000 tons per year at the commercial-scale plant.
E3 is developing the Clearwater project with support from Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) (Irving, Texas) subsidiary Imperial Oil Limited (Calgary, Alberta). Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Metals & Minerals Project Database can read detailed project reports on E3's pilot plant and proposed commercial-scale plant.
Controlled Thermal Resources Incorporated (Imperial, California) is developing its Hell's Kitchen Lithium Brine Extraction Plant in Calipatria, California, which is designed to use DLE to recover lithium concentrate from the company's planned geothermal power plant nearby. The project, which aims to produce 25,000 tons per year of lithium carbonate equivalent by 2025, has picked up support from two key players in the auto industry: General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) (GM) (Detroit, Michigan) and Stellantis N.V. (NYSE:STLA) (Amsterdam, Netherlands), both of which signed offtake agreements in 2021 to supply their EV factories. Subscribers can learn more from Industrial Info's project report.
Compass Minerals (NYSE:CMP) (Overland Park, Kansas) is using technology provided by EnergySource LLC (San Diego, California) to develop its East Side and West Side brine facilities in Ogden, Utah, which will produce 11,000 and 24,000 tons per year, respectively, of battery-grade lithium carbonate over a 60-year mine life. Subscribers can read detailed reports on the East Side and West Side projects.
LG Energy Solution (Seoul, South Korea) agreed to purchase lithium carbonate from Compass for a six-year term beginning in 2025, while Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) (Dearborn, Michigan) signed a binding, five-year supply agreement for up to 40% of the product once production begins.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI project and plant databases can click here for a full list of detailed reports for projects mentioned in this article, and click here for a full list of related plant profiles.
Subscribers can click here for a full list of reports for active and proposed mining projects across the U.S. and Canada that aim to use DLE to procure lithium.
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) platform 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 more than 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).
