- Lake Resources (LKE) and its lithium extraction technology partner, Lilac Solutions, produce 2500 kilograms of lithium carbonate equivalent at Project Kachi in Argentina
- The companies say the lithium carbonate was produced with minimal environmental impact, with far less land and water used than conventional evaporation ponds
- On the back of the results, Lilac has doubled its ownership of the Kachi project from 10 per cent to 20 per cent
- Lake says Kachi is on track to move towards commercial-scale development, which would make it the first lithium brine project in South America to produce lithium at commercial sale without the use of evaporation ponds for lithium concentration
- Lake Resources last traded at 46 cents on March 14
Lake Resources (LKE) and its lithium extraction technology partner, Lilac Solutions, have produced 2500 kilograms of lithium carbonate equivalent at Project Kachi in Argentina.
The companies said the lithium carbonate was produced with minimal environmental impact, with far less land and water used than conventional evaporation ponds.
The lithium carbonate equivalents (LCEs) were extracted with 80 per cent recovery, 90 per cent plant uptime, 1000 times less land compared with evaporation ponds and 10 times less water than conventional aluminium-based absorbents.
Following the result, Lilac has doubled its ownership of Kachi from 10 per cent to 20 per cent.
Lake reported Kachi was on track to move from its pilot phase into commercial-scale development, making the lithium brine project the first in South America to produce lithium at commercial sale without the use of evaporation ponds for lithium concentration.
The news also marks the first implementation of ion exchange for lithium production in South America.
In a joint statement from Lilac and Lake, the company CEOs said today’s announcement marked a new era in scalable lithium production.
“Lithium is a cornerstone of the energy transition — but limitations in production technology have led to increased costs, scarcity, and extreme price volatility,” the CEOs commented.
“Today, we’ve proven that it is possible to produce high-purity lithium faster and without evaporation ponds, all while protecting surrounding communities and ecosystems.”
Once fully developed, the Kachi project is expected to produce 50,000 tonnes per annum of battery-grade lithium products.
Lake Resources last traded at 46 cents on March 14.