JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – ASX-listed lithium and tantalum developer Pilbara Minerals has reached agreement with fellow-listed Lithium Australia to jointly evaluate the commercial potential of a new low-cost processing technology for the production of lithium carbonate.

Pilbara has been investigating opportunities to participate in future value-adding and downstream processing ventures leveraging off its core business, which is based on the development of its Pilgangoora lithium/tantalum project, in Western Australia.

The company reported on Tuesday that Pilgangoora was on track to become a supplier of high-quality spodumene concentrates to the global lithium market within the next 18 months. However, there was also a significant opportunity for Pilbara to move up the value chain and enhance its future competitiveness by participating in lithium conversion, allowing it to benefit from the margins on offer in the lithium carbonate and hydroxide markets.

The company recently commissioned a positive independent scoping study into the opportunity to construct a lithium carbonate/hydroxide plant in Port Hedland, in conjunction with partners. It had also been reviewing the latest research and development (R&D) work into technologies that could reduce the costs for converting spodumene into lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide, offering the potential to further improve relative operating cost performance to alternative sources of supply.

Lithium Australia owned the Sileach process, a proprietary hydrometallurgical process designed to recover lithium from spodumene concentrates. Unlike conventional processes, the Sileach process did not require a roasting step, and, therefore, had the potential to be more energy efficient.

The Sileach process had been successfully tested in the course of bench testing at a number of laboratories. The recent results from testing of concentrates from Pilgangoora, and other spodumene sources, have provided sufficient encouragement to progress to pilot testing at the Antso Minerals facility, located at Lucas Heights in New South Wales.

Under the agreement, Pilbara would work with Lithium Australia to progress the commercial evaluation of the Sileach process, initially through a pilot testwork programme to be undertaken at Antso in the second half of 2016. This testwork programme was scheduled to start in the near future.

Pilbara would provide, at its cost, 1 t of spodumene concentrate at a grade of no less than 4% lithium oxide for the purpose of undertaking this pilot testwork programme, while Lithium Australia would cover all capital costs for establishing the pilot plant. The parties would share equally in the operating costs of the pilot plant programme, which were estimated to be about $400 000.

If the programme was successful, the parties would commit to form a joint venture and undertake a prefeasibility study on the establishment of a large-scale pilot plant facility in the Port Hedland area, the capital cost of which would be met by Lithium Australia.

Pilbara MD and CEO Ken Brinsden said the agreement with Lithium Australia provided a low-cost, low-risk opportunity to jointly evaluate a new downstream processing technology which could ultimately pave the way for Pilbara to participate in the development of a lithium conversion facility in Western Australia.

“The conversion technology for lithium has barely changed in the past 50 years as, until recently, the lithium sector has not attracted the R&D investment required to revolutionise the conversion processes.

“That situation is now changing rapidly as a result of the transformational growth that is occurring in the lithium market, and there is potential for technology to drive a quantum shift in the industry. We would like to position Pilbara in the best possible way to participate in and benefit from these developments, and we are pleased to be working with an Australian company which is currently at the forefront of this new wave of R&D in the lithium sector,” he said.

Brinsden added that Lithium Australia’s hydrometallurgical process had been successfully tested at Antso Minerals at a laboratory scale, achieving lithium extractions of greater than 90% with as little as four hours of leaching.

“This work has paved the way for a pilot testwork programme that is planned to commence shortly under the newly established joint venture, which is initially being formed on a 50:50 basis.

“Subject to a positive outcome, we would envisage moving ahead with further project works to investigate the viability of jointly developing a lithium conversion facility,” he added.

“While our team remains focused on delivering the Pilgangoora project in the first instance, keeping our finger on the R&D pulse and assessing downstream processing options is also important to the future success of the company.”