Geolith brings to Chile technology for sustainable lithium extraction

The French start-up has inaugurated a pilot field trial for their direct lithium extraction filter with its more eco-friendly technology at the Universidad de Antofagasta in northern Chile. 

Chile’s vision of a more sustainable mining industry is leading several companies with more eco-friendly extraction technologies to set their sights on Chile. This is the case with Geolith, a French start-up that has inaugurated a pilot field trial for their direct lithium extraction technology at the Universidad de Antofagasta in northern Chile. 

The initiative has come about thanks to the French Treasury and Economy Ministries’ Private Sector Study and Aid Fund (FASEP) in the context of the collaboration agreement between Geolith and the Universidad de Antofagasta’s Center for Advanced Research and Industrial Minerals Lithium (CELMIN).   

“It’s a filter. The brine passes through the equipment, which captures the lithium while returning the brine back to its natural source. The process ensures that natural lithium sources are not emptied, which reduces the impact of emissions as well as the impact on the environment,” explains Maxime Redondo, Business Development Manager at LATAM Mining. 

Sustainable lithium extraction 

He adds that there is currently no sustainable lithium extraction technology capable of operating at industrial levels and that Geolith is among the technology suppliers that are in a pre-industrial process. The demonstration in northern Chile will give businesses the chance to assess the system and suggest improvements that could help lead to greater production yields. 

“We’re not going to change the current production models of existing projects. We’re not here to tell the mining companies how to do their job, but to complement their existing output and diversify their production sources,” he said. 

In order to keep moving towards an industrial-scale model, the company is looking to build a plant in France, where the filters will be produced. To achieve this, a round of financing is scheduled to be launched for September in order to secure the necessary investment for the project. 

Did you know that Chile is a test market for technologies of the future? To find out more about investment opportunities in the Chilean mining industry, please see the following article.  

Source: Diario Financiero