SWA Lithium and Koch Tech Launch North America's First Commercial DLE Project

SWA Lithium, a joint venture between Standard Lithium and Equinor focused on the South West Arkansas Project, has announced a licensing agreement with Koch Technology Solutions LLC (KTS) to implement KTS' Li-Pro™ Lithium Selective Sorption (Li-Pro LSS) technology at its commercial plant for the SWA Phase 1 Project. This agreement enables SWA Lithium to utilize the Li-Pro LSS technology throughout the first phase of the Project, with the potential to extend its use into future phases.

Key advantages of the licensing agreement include:

•             Rights to apply the Li-Pro LSS technology in subsequent phases of the SWA Project.

•             Performance guarantees for lithium recovery, contaminant rejection, and water usage.

•             A lithium recovery rate of at least 95%.

•             Impurity rejection rates of Calcium, Sodium, Potassium, and Magnesium at 99% or higher.

•            Technical assistance from KTS for the seamless integration of Li-Pro LSS technology into the overall design of the process plant.

•             Exclusive joint development of the technology in the Smackover Formation.

•             Support from KTS during the commissioning and startup phases.

•             License payments structured over multiple milestones.

•             Ongoing collaboration and refinement of technology between SWA Lithium and KTS.

Dr. Andy Robinson, Director, President & COO of Standard Lithium, remarked, “This license agreement represents the culmination of over two years of collaborative efforts with the KTS team to enhance direct lithium extraction (DLE) technology and incorporate it into our joint venture's flowsheet. The Li-Pro LSS technology is now adequately scaled, tested, and de-risked, allowing both the JV and KTS to confidently commit to its commercial application, complete with performance guarantees. This is a significant step in de-risking the Project and highlights the success of our partnership with KTS.”

Garrett Krall, Business Leader for Koch Technology Solutions, noted, “This licensing agreement for our Li-Pro LSS technology is another important milestone in advancing DLE as a commercially viable and environmentally responsible solution to meet future lithium demands.”

Additionally, Standard Lithium has reported the successful operation of its commercial-scale DLE column at its Demonstration Plant in El Dorado, Arkansas. Installed in March 2024, the column is a Li-Pro LSS unit supplied by KTS, identical to those being integrated into the SWA Project's front-end engineering and design (FEED) study. Since its commissioning, the column has surpassed targeted design parameters for lithium recovery and impurity rejection.

In a four-month continuous operation period from April to July 2024, the Li-Pro LSS process achieved an impressive lithium recovery efficiency of 95.4% from a brine flow of 90 gallons per minute, which averaged 183 mg/L lithium during this period. The contamination rejection rates were equally impressive, with sodium, calcium, magnesium, potassium, and boron rejected at rates of 99.9%, 99.6%, 99.2%, 99.7%, and 95.4%, respectively. The high levels of contaminant rejection at the DLE stage facilitate easier and more cost-effective refinement and concentration of the lithium chloride solution into battery-grade carbonate.

As of early October 2024, the commercial-scale Li-Pro LSS column has completed over 725 operational cycles, while the technology overall has achieved nearly 10,000 operational cycles at the Demo Plant. The Demo Plant has processed over 24 million gallons (approximately 92.5 million liters) of Smackover brine, which is continuously reinjected back into the formation.