Lithium Chemicals

What

Neometals, via its majority stake in a 70:30 joint venture with Mineral Resources (“RAM“), is commercialising a proprietary process (ELi Processing Technology (“ELi™“)) to sustainably produce lithium hydroxide and carbonate from lithium chloride, and/or hard rock feedstocks solutions using electrolysis. The ELi™ Processing Technology purifies feedstocks then utilises electricity to convert lithium salt into chemical. In so doing, decarbonising the battery supply chain with scope to significantly reduce CO₂ by using fewer ships, trucks, reagents, processing steps and significantly reducing OPEX and reducing the amount of processing required.

Why

Traditional means of producing lithium chemical creates inherent industry challenges that ELi™ looks to address:

Lithium is the key non-substitutable battery ingredient transporting electric charge, and the World needs more;
Europe has a very small supply of lithium chemicals with demand growing rapidly;
Despite being crucial for the energy transition, lithium production is the largest CO₂ contributor in lithium-ion batteries (LIB);
Primary extraction companies often don’t have means to produce chemicals and need a market for mined intermediate or support to produce chemicals; and
Lithium chemical production needs to be more cost effective and more sustainable.

ELi™ Advantages

ELi™ has several advantages over conventional processes including lower operating expenditures, higher product purity and a smaller CO₂ footprint largely owing to lower process reagent consumption. The patented ELi™ Processing Technology underpins Neometals’ unique Lithium Chemical proposition:

Significant operating and capital cost advantages courtesy of a reduced need for expensive reagents; and
Environmental benefits including potential for net zero vanadium production;
Flexible and replicable business models.

Status

RAM has completed a pilot trial and continues to test third-party brines for potential partners under a low-capex, low-risk technology licensing business model to generate future royalty income.

Lithium Chemicals

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