E3 Metals Corp. Begins Development of a Field Pilot Plant to Test Its Rapid Lithium Extraction
E3 Metals Corp. Begins Development of a
Field Pilot Plant to Test Its Rapid Lithium
Extraction
HIGHLIGHTS
Development of E3 Metals' ion-exchange and extraction technology underway at
commercial facilities
Development of flow sheet will utilize E3's lithium extraction technology combined with
existing lithium production technology
CALGARY
,
Sept. 26
2018 /CNW/ - E3 METALS CORP. (TSXV: ETMC) (FSE: OU7A) (OTC:
EEMMF) (the "Company" or "E3 Metals") is pleased to announce it has begun the development of its
field pilot plant which will incorporate E3's proprietary concentration technology to further validate the
lithium extraction component of the process flow sheet. This technology has the potential to unlock
significant value from E3's expansive lithium resources of 6.7 Mt LCE (inferred)
1
in the Leduc
Reservoir in
Alberta
. E3 Metals owns 76 Alberta Metallic and Industrial Minerals Permits totalling
over 596,000 hectares, or over 1.47 million acres. Our current resources cover only 34% of the total
Leduc Reservoir that E3 Metals currently holds.
The further development of E3's lithium production step involved in the generation of lithium hydroxide
and lithium carbonate will occur at commercial facilities and with partnering EPC firms. This allows
E3 to continue to de-risk its proposed lithium production flowsheet (Figure 1) and advance towards
technical disclosure through a pre-feasibility study of its direct-brine process.
Pilot Plant Design and Timeline
E3 Metals has recently partnered with both GreenCentre Canada and the
National Research Council
of Canada, with support from Alberta Innovates (GCC – AI) and the NRC's Industrial Research
Assistance Program (NRC – IRAP) respectively. These partnerships are to advance E3's ion-
exchange technology developed by the Alessi Lab at the
University of Alberta
to commercial
readiness. These facilities are working towards developing a commercially scalable lithium
extraction process. The results of this work are expected to provide a commercial chemical sorbent.
They will also determine the design parameters for the mechanical equipment required for the ion-
exchange process that should provide all of the inputs required for the design of E3 Metals' pilot
plant. The development plan for E3 Metals for the next 6 months includes:
1
.
Demonstrating repeatability of the
University of Alberta's
extraction technology development at
commercial facilities (GCC – AI and NRC – IRAP)
2
.
Increasing the performance efficiencies of the ion-exchange process by increasing recovery,
concentration factor and lithium uptake
3
.
Developing a commercially scalable ion-exchange sorbent material
4
.
Constructing ion-exchange equipment in a lab environment to refine the mass balance and
generate volumes of concentrate
5
.
Producing lithium hydroxide at the lab scale
6
.
Finalizing the lithium production process flow sheet
7
.
Finalizing the design of the pilot plant
Figure 1: Overview of E3’s Proposed Process Flow Sheet (CNW Group/E3 Metals Corp.)
Lithium Production Process Flow Sheet
E3's proposed lithium production flow sheet, outlined in Figure 1, breaks into three main steps. The
first step involves pumping the lithium enriched brine from the
Leduc
reservoir to the surface. The
second step is creating a higher-grade lithium concentrate that utilizes E3's proprietary ion-exchange
process. The third step generates the final lithium product (lithium hydroxide or carbonate) by further
purification, electrolysis and crystallization.
Step 1: Brine Production and Injection
One of the differentiators that sets E3's project apart is the Leduc Reservoir's ability to produce vast
quantities of lithium-enriched brine. Unique to this reservoir, a single well could produce more than
10,000 m3/d (116 l/s). In the Clearwater Resource area alone, the reservoir contains enough brine
to produce 50,000 tonnes LCE/yr for over 35 years
1
. In
Alberta
, lithium enriched brine is currently
being produced at surface and is subsequently re-injected back into the reservoir through oil and gas
production facilities. E3 plans to use this produced water at surface for the pilot project and avoid
the capital costs associated with drilling a well.
Step 2: Lithium Extraction
The development of the lithium extraction technology by E3 Metals, chemically filters the lithium from
the brine to form a concentrate, with the lithium void waste stream being re-injected back into the
reservoir via a sealed ("closed-loop") system. E3's technology utilizes ion-exchange, a well
understood process capable of treating large volumes of water. E3 has developed a proprietary
chemical sorbent for use in the ion-exchange process that is highly selective for lithium and
consequently has very low selectivity for other metals such as Mg and Ca (
see E3 Metals
May 29, 2018
announcement
). This process happens rapidly, in about 3 hours, as
opposed to 18-24 months for conventional evaporative solars. As such, E3 has demonstrated that it
has the ability to rapidly concentrate and clean the brine in one step. This produces a relatively clean
and high-grade concentrate feedstock for the third step of the lithium production process.
Step 3: Lithium Production
E3 Metals is working with several commercial facilities and EPC firms who have infrastructure and
expertise in place to take E3's concentrate feedstock and generate a lithium product. One of the
benefits of E3's process flow sheet is the flexibility to produce either lithium hydroxide or lithium
carbonate. E3 is focusing its efforts on developing a high purity lithium hydroxide due to the premium
paid for the product by battery cathode manufacturers. This process involves electrolysis and
crystallization to generate lithium hydroxide and is similar to processes utilized by other lithium
companies globally. There are potential capital and operating cost benefits associated with the
production of lithium carbonate and E3 is therefore exploring both alternatives in tandem.
Other Development Goals
The planned operation of the pilot plant and the subsequent testing of E3's concentrate feedstock in
conventional lithium extraction process facilities at this scale will allow E3 to complete the front-end
engineering design (FEED) for a process facility. During this time, E3 plans to upgrade a portion of
its 6.7Mt (million tonne) Inferred resource to Measured and Indicated and complete a full cycle
project economics analysis to pre-feasibility study (PFS) level. At this point, E3 intends to produce a
compliant PFS 43-101 report outlining this information to the market.
The spot price for lithium carbonate is between
USD 12,100
to
USD 13,000
and for lithium hydroxide
between
USD 18,100
to 18,800
2
.
About E3 Metals Corp
.
E3 Metals is a Petro-Lithium company rapidly advancing the development of direct recovery lithium
brine projects in
Alberta
. E3 Metals holds lithium resources at 6.7 Mt LCE (inferred)
1
. The Company
has a compelling competitive advantage by virtue of having access to extensive infrastructure built by
the Oil and Gas industry in
Alberta
. This has provided E3 Metals with low finding costs, as the
Company has been able to sample existing wells to define its resource. This infrastructure may also
provide wells and pipelines for a future lithium production operation, potentially reducing the
Company's future capital requirements. The Company's goal is to develop a commercially viable
lithium extraction and production process and to demonstrate the economic viable of commercial
production of its Alberta Petro-Lithium brine resource. More information about E3 Metals can be
found on our website by visiting:
www.e3metalscorp.com
.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS,
Chris Doornbos
, President & CEO
E3 METALS CORP.
Chris Doornbos
(P.Geo), CEO and Director of E3 Metals Corp., is a Qualified Person as defined by
NI 43-101 and has read and approved the technical information contained in this announcement.
1:
E3 Metals has released information on three 43-101 Technical Reports totalling a resource of 6.7 Mt LCE. The Central Clearwater Resource Area (CCRA) Technical Report,
identifying 1.9Mt LCE (inferred), is dated effective October 27, 2017, and the North Rocky Resource Area (NRRA) Technical Report was dated effective October 27, 2017,
identifies 0.9Mt LCE (inferred). A third report for the Exshaw West Resource Area (EWRA), identifies 3.9Mt LCE (inferred) and was filed on June 15
th
2018, effective June 4
th
2018. All reports are available on SEDAR (
www.sedar.com
)
2:
Argus Media: https://www.argusmedia.com/
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in
the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of
this release.
This news release includes certain forward-looking statements concerning the potential of the
Company's projects to produce saleable lithium byproducts, including LCE, the future performance of
our business, its operations and its financial performance and condition, as well as management's
objectives, strategies, beliefs and intentions. Forward-looking statements are frequently identified by
such words as "may", "will", "plan", "expect", "anticipate", "estimate", "intend" and similar words
referring to future events and results. Forward-looking statements are based on the current opinions
and expectations of management. All forward-looking information is inherently uncertain and subject
to a variety of assumptions, risks and uncertainties, including the speculative nature of mineral
exploration and development, fluctuating commodity prices, the effectiveness and feasibility of
emerging lithium extraction technologies which have not yet been tested or proven on a commercial
scale or on the Company's brine, competitive risks and the availability of financing, as described in
more detail in our recent securities filings available at
www.sedar.com
. Actual events or results may
differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements and we caution against
placing undue reliance thereon. We assume no obligation to revise or update these forward-looking
statements except as required by applicable law.
SOURCE
E3 Metals Corp.
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For further information:
205 - 227 10th St NW, Calgary, AB T2N 1V5, +1 (587) 324-2775,
[email protected], e3metalscorp.com
CO: E3 Metals Corp.
CNW 03:05e 26-SEP-18