{"id":24276,"date":"2022-08-10T11:14:27","date_gmt":"2022-08-10T10:14:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.innovationnewsnetwork.com\/?p=24276"},"modified":"2022-08-10T11:14:27","modified_gmt":"2022-08-10T10:14:27","slug":"boardwalk-lithium-brine-project-fuelling-future-clean-energy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.innovationnewsnetwork.com\/boardwalk-lithium-brine-project-fuelling-future-clean-energy\/24276\/","title":{"rendered":"The Boardwalk lithium brine project – fuelling the future of clean energy"},"content":{"rendered":"
As countries across the globe strive to transition to clean energy, lithium demand is set to surge through the present decade. To keep up with this projected rising demand, production of the commodity must also increase. Currently, North American lithium production accounts for less than 2% of global demand. To combat supply insecurity caused by geopolitical tensions, North America must secure its own lithium supply and ensure a smooth clean energy transition<\/p>\n
LithiumBank is an exploration and development company, attempting to increase production in the region by acquiring known lithium high-grade assets with existing infrastructure. The company aims to position western Canada as a contributor to North America\u2019s energy future through the development of a strategic battery-grade lithium resource. Its flagship asset, the Boardwalk Lithium Brine Project, has great infrastructure and potential for lithium production. By utilising direct lithium extraction (DLE) technologies, LithiumBank plans to produce lithium in an economic and sustainable way. To find out more, The Innovation Platform<\/em> spoke to Robert Shewchuk, LithiumBank\u2019s Chairman and CEO.<\/p>\n There was a substantial boom in the lithium market from early 2015 through to 2018, where pure lithium companies were looking to produce lithium as a core product. Many of the first movers worked to identify where the best projects might be, especially projects that were on the lower grade of the curve in western Canada. They secured the best assets and received funding during the 2015-2016 period as lithium was performing well in the marketplace, partially on the back of lithium prices significantly rising, a higher market forecast, higher demand, and limited supply.<\/p>\n However, in 2018 it was clear that this was a false start, and the market was forecast too far into the future. Lithium prices then began to drastically roll over, pricing under $10,000 per tonne for lithium carbonate and hydroxide. After this, companies were unable to continue to fund the projects. This was a problem because, at that time, the regulatory framework in western Canada meant that a significant amount of money must be spent on a project in order for it to continue.<\/p>\n When prices declined in 2018, the capital markets were closed to lithium in general, and especially to petroleum brines, considering they were on the lower end of the concentration curve. After doing all that work and gaining a good understanding of these assets, those companies were unable to finance the projects and ended up returning to the regulatory body.<\/p>\n Some of them, however, were able to continue by focusing on the DLE technology side. Instead of tapping the capital markets for funding, they were able to go to the provincial governments for technology grants and programmes that were in place.<\/p>\n LithiumBank was formed in 2018-2019 in light of the impending electrification of society. At that time, the adoption of electric vehicles (EV) was beginning to look very favourable, and the lithium markets were subsequently identified.<\/p>\n Ultimately, our view was that, as companies continued to struggle, assets would start coming back into the pool. Our initial strategy was to remain patient from 2019 through to 2021, with the thought that, by 2022, we would secure a long-lasting lithium asset.<\/p>\n In 2019-2022, we used risk capital to put together a portfolio of the best assets in western Canada, focusing on the Leduc Formation \u2013 a Devonian-aged carbonate reef complex with a production track record of over 70 years. The portfolio is now over 3.2 million acres and, of that, 2.9 million acres are in Alberta and 326,000 acres are in Saskatchewan. Our flagship asset, Boardwalk<\/a>, is about 750,000 acres of the Alberta portfolio.<\/p>\n Boardwalk is a closed system with over 300m of thickness and is located at Sturgeon Lake, where over 550 oil and gas wells have been drilled and produced. Due to the expansive oil and gas industry that has evolved over the last 50 years in the area, the infrastructure is fantastic. For example, there is a four-lane motorway that connects the area to surrounding infrastructure, gas plants, and well pads.<\/p>\n The characteristics of the lithium-rich brine at Boardwalk, such as pH and temperature, make it highly amenable to the DLE technologies that we are using for our preliminary economic assessment (PEA). The pH of the brine is important when processing as you must avoid adding acid or adjusting the pH wherever possible. Adjusting the pH could result in precipitating certain elements that you do not want to have in high concentrations.<\/p>\n The deposit also has six million tonnes of lithium, and, because of the high transmissivity, or high deliverability of the brine to surface, can potentially produce large quantities of the commodity.\u00a0 Due to the amount of lithium available in brine, production will be able to continue for several decades.<\/p>\n To make a premium lithium asset, it is important to value size, grade, and deliverability. Beyond that, the temperature of the water is important relative to what daily processes you want to use. The temperature will be lost through the system, so at the end of the process the water remains hot enough for potential carbon sequestration to occur during re-injection of the brine. By starting at approximately 80\u00b0C, we can maintain minimal temperature loss that could allow carbon sequestration with disposal of the brine. Through this, we can become the cleanest and most ESG-friendly potential opportunity.<\/p>\nTo begin, can you outline the development of the lithium market in Canada and the formation of LithiumBank?<\/h3>\n
What are the advantages of your Boardwalk Lithium Brine Project?<\/h3>\n