REG - CleanTech Lithium - Pilot Plant Producing First Lithium Chloride

Cleantech LithiumAnnouncement

20/03/2024 07:15

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RNS Number : 5663H  CleanTech Lithium PLC  20 March 2024

20.03.2024

 

CleanTech Lithium PLC ("CleanTech Lithium" or the "Company")

Pilot Plant Commences Operation with First Lithium Chloride Eluate Produced

 

CleanTech Lithium PLC (AIM:CTL, Frankfurt: T2N, OTCQX: CTLHF), an exploration
and development company advancing lithium projects in Chile, announces that
the operation of the Company´s pilot plant has commenced and is producing
lithium chloride eluate from the Direct Lithium Extraction (DLE) process.

 

Pilot Plant Highlights:

·    Commissioning phase of DLE pilot plant completed and operation
underway

·    Brine from the Laguna Verde project is being fed into DLE columns
where lithium chloride is extracted onto the adsorbent, before desorption with
water to create a purified lithium chloride eluate

·    First production of eluate was completed in the past week

·    A reverse osmosis unit at the pilot plant will be used to concentrate
the eluate

·    The pilot plant has a design capacity of 1 tonne per month lithium
carbonate equivalent (LCE) as concentrated eluate

·    The concentrated eluate will be shipped in batches to North America
for conversion into battery-grade lithium carbonate

·    The Company will determine the appropriate volume of each batch based
on end user requirements and conversion cost considerations

·    The Company has engaged Conductive Energy for the conversion,
utilising standard industry processing steps

·    The pilot plant will be used for process optimisation and product
verification and will provide important input into the Pre-feasibility study
(PFS) currently underway for the project

·    Operation of the pilot plant will place CTL among a small number of
companies in the lithium exploration sector to produce meaningful quantities
of battery grade product at pilot scale

·    Samples of the product will be made available to potential strategic
partners such as major auto and battery manufacturers, in preparation for
off-take agreements

 

Commenting, Aldo Boitano, Chief Executive Officer, of CleanTech Lithium PLC,
said:

"I am very pleased to inform the market that our pilot plant has commenced
operation with the first volume of lithium chloride eluate produced. Batches
of concentrated eluate will be shipped to North America to be converted into
battery grade lithium carbonate by a third-party processor. This pilot plant
plans to produce significant quantities of battery grade product for
evaluation by potential strategic partners, making CTL one of the few
companies in the sector to produce pilot scale volumes of battery grade
product. The pilot plant positions CTL as a leader in the sector and in Chile,
with first eluate production representing a significant milestone for the
Company."

 

Further Information

 

The Company´s pilot plant, which is located at the Company´s R&D Centre
in Copiapó, some 250km from Laguna Verde, underwent an extended commissioning
phase which is now completed. Washing and adsorbent activation protocols were
completed, and filtering equipment and a reverse osmosis (RO) unit installed.
Brine from the Laguna Verde project is stored in a large 243,000 litre vessel
outside the pilot plant, which is fed into an indoor tank having passed
through filtration to remove suspended solids. It is then fed into the DLE
columns shown in Figure 1, which are filled with adsorbent designed to be
selective for lithium molecules. Lithium, as lithium chloride, is adsorbed
from the brine, before desorption with water to create a lithium chloride
eluate. DLE acts as a purification stage recovering lithium chloride from the
brine whilst rejecting more than 99% of other impurities. First production of
lithium chloride eluate was completed in the past week.

A RO unit at the plant will be used to concentrate the eluate, with the
concentrated eluate to be shipped to North America for the downstream
conventional processing stages and conversion into battery-grade lithium
carbonate.

Figure 1: Pilot Plant Multi-Valve Feeding Brine to DLE Columns (approx. 2.5
metres high)

 

Downstream Processing into Battery-Grade Lithium Carbonate

For the conversion of the concentrated lithium chloride eluate into
battery-grade lithium carbonate, CTL has engaged Conductive Energy based in
Alberta, Canada, which has a conversion facility in Chicago, USA.
Concentrated eluate will be shipped in batches on a monthly basis to this
facility (see Figure 2).  The first step will be to further concentrate the
eluate using Forward Osmosis (FO), with an FO unit provided by Forward Water
Technology, another Canadian company based in Ontario. FO achieves a high
concentration factor with low energy use.

 

Figure 2:  Conductive Energy - Milling and Refining Equipment, Continuously
Stirred Tank Reactor, and Lithium Carbonate product in Chicago, USA (pictures
left to right)

 

Following FO, the conversion process stages undertaken by Conductive Energy,
involve polishing to remove trace impurities, carbonation to precipitate
lithium carbonate, solid/liquid separation and drying. These standard industry
processes for lithium carbonate production are reflective of the conversion
process CTL plans to use at a commercial scale for the Laguna Verde project.
Samples of the lithium carbonate product will be analysed by Conductive Energy
and a third-party independent laboratory to confirm the benchmark of 99.5%
Li(2)CO(3) is achieved for battery-grade lithium carbonate. The product will
be packaged for shipping to potential strategic partners and off-takers for
product verification in the coming months.

 

**ENDS**

 

Notes:

 

The information communicated within this announcement is deemed to constitute
inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No
596/2014 which is part of UK law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal)
Act 2018. Upon publication of this announcement, this inside information is
now considered to be in the public domain. The person who arranged for the
release of this announcement on behalf of the Company was Gordon Stein,
Director and CFO.

 

 For further information contact:

 CleanTech Lithium PLC
 Aldo Boitano/Gordon Stein                     Jersey office: +44 (0) 1534 668 321

                                               Chile office: +562-32239222
                                               Or via Celicourt
 Celicourt Communications                      +44 (0) 20 7770 6424
 Felicity Winkles/Philip Dennis/Ali AlQahtani  cleantech@celicourt.uk (mailto:cleantech@celicourt.uk)

 Harbor Access - North America                 +1 475 477 9401

 Jonathan Paterson/Lisa Micali
 Porter Novelli - Chile                        +569 95348744

 Ernesto Escobar                               Ernesto@publicoporternovelli.cl

 Beaumont Cornish Limited                      +44 (0) 207 628 3396

 (Nominated Adviser)

 Roland Cornish/Asia Szusciak

 Canaccord Genuity (Joint Broker)              +44 (0) 207 523 4680

 James Asensio

 Fox-Davies Capital Limited (Joint Broker)     +44 20 3884 8450
 Daniel Fox-Davies                             daniel@fox-davies.com (mailto:daniel@fox-davies.com)

 

Beaumont Cornish Limited ("Beaumont Cornish") is the Company's Nominated
Adviser and is authorised and regulated by the FCA. Beaumont Cornish's
responsibilities as the Company's Nominated Adviser, including a
responsibility to advise and guide the Company on its responsibilities under
the AIM Rules for Companies and AIM Rules for Nominated Advisers, are owed
solely to the London Stock Exchange. Beaumont Cornish is not acting for and
will not be responsible to any other persons for providing protections
afforded to customers of Beaumont Cornish nor for advising them in relation to
the proposed arrangements described in this announcement or any matter
referred to in it.

 

About CleanTech Lithium

CleanTech Lithium (AIM:CTL, Frankfurt:T2N, OTCQX:CTLHF) is an exploration and
development company advancing sustainable lithium projects in Chile for the
clean energy transition. Committed to net-zero, CleanTech Lithium's mission is
to produce material quantities of sustainable battery grade lithium products
using Direct Lithium Extraction technology powered by renewable energy. The
Company plans to be a leading supplier of 'green' lithium to the EV and
battery manufacturing market.

CleanTech Lithium has four lithium projects - Laguna Verde, Francisco Basin,
Llamara and Salar de Atacama - located in the lithium triangle, a leading
centre for battery grade lithium production. The two major projects: Laguna
Verde and Francisco Basin are situated within basins controlled by the
Company, which affords significant potential development and operational
advantages. All four projects have direct access to existing infrastructure
and renewable power.

CleanTech Lithium is committed to using renewable power for processing and
reducing the environmental impact of its lithium production by utilising
Direct Lithium Extraction with reinjection of spent brine. Direct Lithium
Extraction is a transformative technology which removes lithium from brine,
with higher recoveries than conventional processes. The method offers short
development lead times with no extensive site construction or evaporation pond
development so there is minimal water depletion from the
aquifer. www.ctlithium.com (http://www.ctlithium.com/)

 

 

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