There's an emerging industry in Alberta -- potentially worth billions of dollars -- mining ancient saltwater deposits instead of solid rock for lithium.
Lithium is used mostly in rechargeable batteries but is also an important ingredient in glass cooktops and other everyday goods.It's been a big week for Calgary-based E3 Lithium as its first pilot plant started extracting the important metal from liquid brine deposits, located deep underground near Olds, Alta.
"Our initial plan is somewhere between 20 and 30 thousand tonnes of lithium hydroxide. We think we can have that running by late 2026 or thereabouts," Doornbos said. About three-quarters of the world's supply of the reactive metal is used in rechargeable batteries -- everything from phones to electric vehicles -- with another 14 per cent used in ceramics and glass.
"They cause a longer timeline and if we want to bring projects on quickly, we have to make sure that we are supporting that early-stage ability to go and do the exploration," said Jason Latkowcer, CEO of Pan American Energy.In many parts of the world, lithium is extracted using large evaporation ponds but E3's method essentially filters trace lithium out of geothermal brine found far beneath the earth around oil deposits.
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