SLB reports sustainable lithium breakthrough

CLAYTON VALLEY, September 10, 2024 – SLB has extracted 96% of lithium from brine at a demo plant in Nevada in a breakthrough for sustainable production, the company said on Tuesday.

The solution produces lithium 500 times faster than conventional methods while using only 10% of the land, the company said.

The energy technology player said its approach combines its subsurface expertise with surface engineering of advanced technologies that include direct lithium extraction (DLE).

DLE extracts lithium from water with high salinity, or brine, typically via evaporation, which requires a large land area and causes major losses of water. SLB’s alternative approach uses less land and water and returns spent brine to its source.

“Lithium is a key enabler of electrification, so we must find ways to accelerate its production without adversely affecting the environment,” said Gavin Rennick, president of SLB’s New Energy business.

“SLB’s demonstration plant in Clayton Valley proves our unique integrated approach to produce scalable quantities of lithium in the fastest, most economical and sustainable way for today’s market. This accelerates deployment of viable commercial-scale facilities for high-quality lithium products that are the backbone of our electrification economy.”

Lithium is a key metal used in electric vehicle batteries. It experienced a 30% uptick in demand in 2023 and is facing the steepest demand growth among energy transition metals, according to the IEA.

Photo of the lithium extraction demo plant in Clayton Valley, Nevada, courtesy of SLB.

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