A Call for Lawmakers to Support the Lithium Industry

Welcome to Lithium Link, your resource for insightful news and expert commentary on the latest happenings in the Arkansas lithium scene.

This week: The leader of the Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce is calling for lawmakers to support Arkansas’ nascent lithium industry.

In a July 5 column in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce CEO Randy Zook writes that South Arkansas lithium deposits could “help our state enter a new era of transformational economic growth.”

• “For Arkansans, the growth of this emerging industry will be foundational to the future of our economy,” Zook writes. “The lithium industry will bring countless new jobs, both in the construction and operation of the wells.?
• “Moreover, since the facilities that host the wells for extraction are also set to house the production and refinement of the lithium itself, we will see more job creation up and down the supply chain beyond just the operation of the wells themselves. The benefits to our state's economy do not stop at lithium extraction, as related industries like battery production could also see expansion.”

Zook also cites investments Arkansas is already seeing from global companies like ExxonMobil, and writes that Arkansas’ lithium cache could help the U.S. ease its dependence on lithium mined in other countries —?particularly by our adversaries, including China. But the industry will need support from lawmakers to grow:

• “Lawmakers should look to partner with and support the budding industry to help secure not just our state's economic future but also our country's energy security and independence. Through these partnerships, Arkansas can grow into a lithium powerhouse in the years to come.”

Read more: Get Zook’s complete column at the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

Up & Down the Supply Chain

Zook’s guest column is a good distillation of how Arkansas business and political leaders are thinking about the economic opportunities lithium represents. One avenue of thought: the supply chain that could grow around lithium production —?one that could include lithium battery manufacturers.

In our June 6 edition of Lithium Link, we featured a conversation with Robert Reynolds, president of Shuler Drilling Co. of El Dorado, a 50-year drilling veteran who is in the loop with local economic development groups. He knows that battery makers have already made local inquiries.?

• “They’re interested. They want to make their plans,” Reynolds told us. “But again, they’re not ready to pull the trigger until they see that indeed a large amount of lithium chloride can be extracted from the native brine.”

In terms of other job creation, leaders like Robert Mintak, CEO of Standard Lithium Ltd. of Vancouver, see the local industry in need of an array of workers, including fabricators, electricians, logical control programmers, welders, pipefitters, engineers and more:

• “It’s very similar to what the bromine industry [in Arkansas] needs currently, but it’ll be … additional horsepower,” Mintak said in Part 2 of our interview in the July 2 Lithium Link. “And additionally, with the other entrants into the space, it has an opportunity to [have] a very long life, and then there’s going to be positions that we’ll need to hire that I’m sure we haven’t even identified yet.”

More: See more in our interviews with Reynolds here and Mintak here.

A New Approach to DLE Takes Shape in Louisiana

Companies involved in the growing lithium industry —?including global giants like Exxon — are seeking innovations and technological breakthroughs to make direct lithium extraction (DLE) commercially viable. One Houston firm is working with manufacturers in Lafayette, Louisiana, on a new modular, transportable plant for lithium extraction, according to the Shreveport-Bossier City Advocate.

International Battery Metals of Houston has teamed with Burner Fire Control of Broussard, Louisiana, and The Shaw Group of Houston to build a mobile lithium extraction plant prototype that could be set up quickly and cheaply compared to traditional plants.?

• Reporter Liz Sawine writes that the transportable plant can be set up on small plots of land without the need for concrete foundations or extensive construction, making it particularly suitable for the Smackover Formation in Louisiana, Texas and Arkansas, and eliminating the need for expensive pipelines.
• The Shaw Group built the prototype at its fabrication yard in Lake Charles, Louisiana, and IBAT has been testing it at US Magnesium in Salt Lake City, Utah.
• When it comes to DLE, John Burba, founder and chief technology officer at IBT, thinks his small startup has built a better mousetrap.
• "A traditional plant will typically take 4 to 6 years to build," Burba told the newspaper. "We built this plant in 10 months. If you roll engineering and procurement into it, you're probably 16 to 18 months, all in. Once we're really locked down on all our basic engineering, it will be less than a year. That is a huge time to market advantage."

The company expects to have performance data from its prototype plant in Utah within a few months.?

Read more: Get the Advocate’s full report on the IBT project here.

Plus: Reuters has more on IBT's innovations here.

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