Despite Record EV Production Numbers, Shortage of Battery Metals Looms - Seite 2

The goal of the expansion program is to increase the resource size while moving towards a full Feasibility Study for the HMN Li Project. The property is surrounded by two leading lithium producers, Livent and POSCO, which acquired the property from Galaxy Resources (now Allkem) for US$280 million.

So far throughout this 2023 resource program, Lithium South has received excellent lithium values from all holes completed to date. These included an average of samples of 663 mg/L Li, with a range of 320-752 mg/L Li, and ranging from 569 mg/L Li to 708 mg/L Li in another drill hole. The latest results also include nine packer samples collected between 24 and 189 meters, with a density range of 1.215 to 1.218 g/mL and a conductivity range of 196.3 to 209.5 mS/cm. The goal of the monitoring wells are to provide a preliminary indication of whether the claim block will support one or more shallow pumping wells for potential future lithium production.

To increase the potential of the HMN Li Project, Lithium South has taken steps to investigate the potential for Direct Lithium Extraction (DLE) by providing three 2,000-liter bulk samples of high-quality HMN Li brine for testing. The tests were conducted by three strategic partners: China's Chemphys Chengdu, Argentina's Eon Minerals, and California-based Lilac Solutions.

A similar DLE process has also drawn the interest of billionaire Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK-A) (NYSE:BRK-B), but in California's Salton Sea instead of South America's Lithium Triangle. Through its subsidiary Berkshire Hathaway Energy Renewables ('BHE Renewables'), the company is planning for 2026 as its goal for producing lithium as a byproduct of existing geothermal energy production in the region.

BHE Renewables already runs a fleet of 10 geothermal plants in the Imperial Valley. After constructing a DLE demonstration plant to assess the viability of lithium extraction, the company plans to go on to potentially build a commercial-scale facility with a projected annual capacity of 90,000 metric tons of lithium.

It's worth noting, however, that an initial $15M grant from the US Department of Energy was initially awarded to BHE, only to be quietly rescinded just weeks later. After 13 months of negotiations between the company and the government, talks stalled as Berkshire sought control over patents, changes to technology, and whether it could one day sell the lithium business, even after the government helped build it, as reported by Reuters.