CleanTech Lithium PLC, a company focused on advancing sustainable lithium projects in Chile, has announced the successful completion of the initial production stage of its DLE pilot plant. The company also reported positive results from downstream process tests conducted by its process partners in North America, aimed at producing battery-grade lithium carbonate.

The company’s DLE pilot plant in Copiapó, Chile, has successfully produced an initial volume of 88 m³ of concentrated eluate, equivalent to approximately 1 ton of lithium carbonate (LCE), over 384 operating hours and 14 cycles. This milestone marks the completion of the first production stage. Results indicate that the DLE adsorbent achieved a lithium recovery rate of about 95% from the brine, with total recovery (adsorption plus desorption) reaching approximately 88%. The high impurity rejection rates resulted in a low impurity eluate, suitable for downstream conversion. The concentrated eluate is being shipped in four batches to Conductive Energy's facilities in Chicago, USA, for conversion into battery-grade lithium carbonate. Conductive Energy’s test-work on a 200-liter sample shipped in May 2024 optimized the downstream process, and subsequent tests on larger shipments produced lithium carbonate with 99.75% purity, confirming the process’s efficiency and repeatability. This success represents a significant step forward in developing a process for producing battery-grade lithium for the Laguna Verde project. CleanTech Lithium remains at the forefront of DLE-based projects in Chile, and this pilot-scale production will provide substantial test samples for potential offtake partners. The reserve report for Laguna Verde, pending the completion of the re-injection well in September, is expected from Montgomery and Associates in October 2024.

Steve Kesler, Executive Chairman and Interim CEO of CleanTech Lithium PLC, remarked: “We are very pleased with these results, as they validate our capability to produce battery-grade lithium with minimal impurities from our Laguna Verde brine project.” Collaborating with our downstream process partners, Forward Water and Conductive Energy, we can now demonstrate the full DLE process from brine to final lithium product.

“The refined downstream process will be applied to the initial 88 m³ of concentrated eluate, roughly 1 ton of LCE, produced during the first stage of our DLE pilot plant operations. This will generate substantial test samples of battery-grade lithium carbonate for evaluation by potential strategic partners. This development is crucial as the Chilean government assesses the feasibility of lithium projects to identify the most advanced companies and achieve its goal of having three to four new lithium projects in development by 2026.”