Dec 23 2014
Lithium Americas Corp. is pleased to announce that POSCO's innovative high efficiency lithium extraction demo plant was inaugurated at LAC's Cauchari-Olaroz lithium project in Jujuy, Argentina on December 19, 2014.
Inauguration of Demo Plant
Among the 200+ people attending the Inauguration were the Governor of Jujuy Province, Eduardo Fellner, the Secretary of Mining of Argentina, Jorge Mayoral, and many representatives of all six local communities. POSCO was represented by Dr. Choi, Senior Vice President, and Dr. Uong Chon, Head of the POSCO lithium project.
POSCO, Korea's largest steel company and a leader in the development of advanced material processes, has developed an innovative lithium extraction technology, which it claims is much faster than traditional brine evaporation technology, has a recovery rate which is significantly higher than traditional brine evaporation technology, and minimizes the environmental footprint associated with large scale evaporation ponds used in traditional brine evaporation technology. POSCO's several hundred tonne Demo Plant is the final stage test for its high efficiency lithium extraction process, having previously successfully operated pilot plants in 2011 and 2013, respectively. The Demo Plant test is expected to take several weeks.
Lithium Americas and POSCO signed a Co-Operation Agreement in January 2014. Pursuant to the Co-operation Agreement, POSCO has located its Demo Plant at Lithium Americas' Cauchari-Olaroz lithium project - the third largest known lithium brine resource in the world. Following determination by POSCO that the Demo Plant is operating to expectations, LAC will enter into a 90-day exclusivity period for the negotiation of an agreement for commercial stage production with POSCO.
Commenting on the Inauguration, LAC's President and CEO, John Kanellitsas, said: "POSCO is now producing lithium at Cauchari. We congratulate Dr. Chon and POSCO for achieving this important milestone. We are all very proud of what has been accomplished in a very short period of time, and we are most grateful for the tireless efforts from an extremely talented and committed local team and the people of Jujuy Province, who all worked together alongside POSCO, to deliver on every timeline and budget metric. I would also like to acknowledge the strong support we have received from Governor Fellner, Secretary Mayoral, and our partners at JEMSE, and their dedication to advancing our project."
LAC's Executive Chairman, Tom Hodgson, added: "This important milestone demonstrates our commitment to a corporate mission focused on commercializing our world-class lithium resource using a sustainable, energy-efficient, and environmentally-friendly production process. LAC's pledge is to follow sustainable development practices to protect this special lithium resource of the Argentine Puna for the benefit of all our stakeholders for generations to come."