Eramet says it has delivered first lithium carbonate manufacturing at its newly commissioned Centenario plant, in Salta Province, Argentina.
The Centenario plant is the primary facility to implement at an industrial scale Eramet’s superior Direct Lithium Extraction (DLE) know-how. This know-how delivers sustainable and highly-efficient lithium carbonate appropriate for electrical automobile battery purposes, Eramet says. Centenario first plant is designed to extract and produce 24,000 t/y of battery-grade lithium carbonate, and at full capability must be positioned within the first quartile of the lithium trade cost-curve. First lithium carbonate manufacturing has been achieved lower than three years after Eramet began the development of the plant.
Whole drainable mineral assets of the Centenario-Ratones salar quantity to greater than 15 Mt of Lithium Carbonate Equal (LCE), with a median focus of 407 mg/L of lithium contained within the brine, the corporate says. This useful resource is giant sufficient to help long-term development optionality for manufacturing capability to above 75,000 t/y of LCE.
On October 24, Eramet introduced it had regained full possession of its flagship lithium enterprise in Argentina, buying-out the 49.9% share of its companion of their joint-venture Eramine which totally owns the Centenario plant.
Christel Bories, Chair and CEO of Eramet group, says: “The beginning of our lithium manufacturing at Centenario in Argentina represents a key milestone for the diversification of the group into metals for the vitality transition, which is able to place Eramet as the primary European firm to provide lithium carbonate at an industrial scale. I wish to thank and congratulate our groups for his or her robust dedication and their dedication in delivering this DLE challenge inside a formidable timeframe in comparison with related initiatives within the area, regardless of the technical, logistical and meteorological challenges related to its location at 4,000 m of altitude within the distant Andean Highlands. In 2025, we are going to ramp up manufacturing on the plant, aiming at turning into a key international participant within the sustainable manufacturing of lithium.”
