CALGARY,
AB, March 2, 2023 /CNW/ - E3 LITHIUM LTD.
(TSXV: ETL) (FSE: OW3) (OTCQX: EEMMF), "E3" or the "Company,"
Alberta's leading lithium
developer and extraction technology innovator, is pleased to
outline an overview of its 2023 goals and strategic vision.
Accomplishing the 2023 goals outlined below provides the
necessary catalysts for E3 to move towards producing battery-grade
lithium from its significant resources in Alberta. By actively evaluating commercially
available, and therefore, lower risk process and design solutions,
E3 believes it can reduce the project development timeframe,
allowing E3 to meet its goal of a commercial facility by 2026.
Enabling the acceleration of the project development and the
production of battery-ready lithium may provide significant
advantages to project economics and project financing.
"With a clear strategy in place, this year E3 is set to deliver
on the most significant milestones in the company's history,"
commented Chris Doornbos, President
& CEO of E3 Lithium. "We are confident that successfully
achieving these milestones will firmly establish E3 as a leader of
sustainable, locally supplied battery-ready lithium products, and
will position E3 for success, as it looks to move from development
into commercialization following the success of our pilot."
E3's 2023 Goals and Milestones
2023
Goals
|
Milestones
|
Q1 2023: Resource
Upgrade to Measured and Indicated
A Measured and Indicated (M+I) resource upgrade
increases the understanding and confidence in our brine
producibility. This enables E3 to develop more accurate
production plans and allows the Company to calculate a
reserve within its upcoming PFS.
|
- Announce results of
the Measured and Indicated upgrade
- Publish the NI
43-101 report
|
Q3 2023: Field
pilot plant
The goal of the pilot
is to provide critical information for
E3 to design its commercial facility. E3 has been
developing multiple flow sheets and working with
design firms with a complementary breadth of
knowledge on various aspects of the process. E3 plans
to select the most viable, and fastest path to
commercial, direct extraction technology for Phase 1 of
its commercial production facility.
|
- Obtain approval on
facility license from the Alberta Energy Regulator
- Complete Detailed
Engineering and Design
- Publish Key
Performance Indicators (KPIs) on expected pilot
performance
- Commission
equipment on site
- Commence pilot
operations
- Publish results
against the previously outlined KPIs
|
Q3-Q4 2023: Lithium
hydroxide samples
Producing lithium
hydroxide with industry-proven
downstream conversion processes at pilot scale allows
E3 to produce battery grade products from its Direct
Lithium Extraction concentrate. A benefit is the ability to
provide samples for potential offtake partners for
evaluation.
|
- Initiate testing
program with an industry leader for lithium hydroxide
production
- Publish results and
specification of the lithium hydroxide produced
|
End of 2023:
Pre-Feasibility Study (PFS)
E3 plans to complete a
PFS outlining the detailed plans
for its first commercial facility and one of the first
global reserves for a DLE resource.
|
- Engage
Pre-Feasibility EPC firm
- Define capacity for
the first commercial facility
- Publish the results
of the PFS
|
E3's Focused Path to First Lithium
E3's primary focus is to achieve its major milestones in 2023.
E3 believes that reaching these goals, culminating with the
completion of its PFS, will be the catalyst for E3 to move towards
commercial development of its first lithium production facility.
The Company is focusing on assessing low-risk processes and
technologies to be included in its Pre-Feasibility design, which
will result in commercially available solutions with the potential
to reduce the time to design and construct and increase the
likelihood of success of the commercial operations. This strategy
should enable E3 to move more quickly through the next stages of
project development once its PFS is complete.
Following a successful PFS, E3 will aim to complete a
Feasibility Study, obtain all required regulatory approvals and
deliver a project financing arrangement to enable the construction
of its first commercial facility in Alberta.
Producing battery-grade lithium from E3's resources involves
bringing together three well known and understood processes into a
combined flowsheet. Within each of these processes are commercially
operating solutions that E3 can leverage to assist in accelerating
its timeframes.
- Brine Production: A series of Alberta industry standard pipeline connected
wells delivers the brine from the aquifer to and from the
processing facility.
- Direct Lithium Extraction: Ion-exchange and water
treatment, designed specifically for the extraction of lithium,
employs solid liquid separation technology commonly used in similar
applications combined with lithium selective sorbents.
- Lithium Production: Conversion from lithium sulphate or
chloride to lithium hydroxide using conversion technology is
utilized in most current lithium hydroxide and carbonate production
and will be designed for E3 by a leading industry equipment
supplier.
E3's highly qualified team of process and project engineers have
built facilities in Alberta
similar in size to E3's first commercial lithium production
facility and have a clear vision for accomplishing this goal.
De-Risking Factors for E3's Path to First Lithium
Early-To-Market Advantages: Recent announcements of major
investments in the lithium industry highlight the advantages of E3
bringing lithium to market expeditiously. E3 predicts the
early-to-market advantage allows the potential to capture
higher realized lithium prices and subsequently better overall
economics for its initial facility. Additionally, this could result
in higher value offtake contracts and potential financial support
from major battery companies and automotive manufacturers that will
more likely occur during the supply/demand imbalance expected in
the mid 2020s.
Working with E3's Significant Resource Base: E3's
significant resources in the Bashaw District, and the untapped
potential of the Rocky Area and north, may offer opportunities to
partner with larger companies on developing its assets that may
assist in securing funding and advancing its timeframes.
Offtake Contracts: E3 is active in developing
relationships with the battery and automotive industries as it
moves through the next phase of project development in 2023. E3's
strategy has been to develop meaningful agreements that provide
binding provisions for the development of future sales contracts.
E3 has signed non-binding Memorandums of Understanding (MOU) with
battery and automotive manufacturers, however, has elected to keep
such MOUs confidential to allow for the continued negotiation with
additional parties.
Local, Sustainable Lithium: In the global landscape, the
search for critical minerals to fuel the race to electrify
transport has brought the focus to the supply chain and the impacts
of acquiring these minerals. We anticipate using only about 3% of
the land relative to conventional and currently operating lithium
production systems. We also operate a closed loop system that does
not interact with the local fresh water sources. Given our
operations resemble those of the oil and gas industry in
Alberta, there is long-standing
support and relationships with stakeholders where E3 will be
operating. We can potentially supply the local North American, and
European markets with a high ESG standard lithium
product.
Pure Lithium: Positioning itself for the future, E3
continues its strategic partnership with Pure Lithium, a lithium
metal and battery start up. While this will likely not produce a
commercially viable product in time for E3's first lithium
facility, it has the potential to provide optionality for E3 to
co-produce a final battery in Alberta in the future.
E3 is very excited about the year ahead and thanks its
shareholders for their continued support in growing E3 towards its
goals of first lithium production in Alberta.
About E3 Lithium
E3 Lithium is a development company
with total of 24.3 million tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent
(LCE) inferred mineral resources1 in Alberta. As outlined in E3's Preliminary
Economic Assessment, the Clearwater Lithium Project has an NPV8% of
USD 1.1 Billion with a 32% IRR
pre-tax and USD 820 Million with a
27% IRR after-tax1.Through the successful scale up its
DLE technology towards commercialization, E3 Lithium's goal is to
produce high purity, battery grade lithium products. With a
significant lithium resource and innovative technology solutions,
E3 Lithium has the potential to deliver lithium to market from one
of the best jurisdictions in the world.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Chris Doornbos, President &
CEO
E3 Lithium Ltd.
1: The Preliminary
Economic Assessment (PEA) for the Clearwater Lithium Project NI
43-101 technical report is effective Sept 17, 2021. The mineral
resource NI 43-101 Technical Report for the North Rocky Property,
effective October 27, 2017, identified 0.9Mt LCE (inferred). The
mineral resource NI 43-101 Technical Report for the Bashaw District
Project, effective July 11, 2022, identified 23.4Mt LCE (inferred).
All reports are available on the E3 Lithium's website
(e3lithium.ca/technical-reports) and SEDAR
(www.sedar.com).
|
Forward-Looking and Cautionary Statements
This news release includes certain forward-looking statements 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.
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.
SOURCE E3 Lithium