The joint venture between MGX Minerals, Eureka Resources is expected to speed up petrolithium recovery system on commercial scale in the US
Image: Eureka Resources Standing Stone Wastewater Treatment Facility. Photo courtesy of CNW Group/MGX Minerals Inc.
MGX Minerals and Eureka Resources have formed a joint venture (JV) to install a petrolithium recovery system in Pennsylvania, US.
The newly formed joint venture will initially focus on fast tracking the deployment of rapid lithium recovery system at Eureka’s Standing Stone advanced wastewater Treatment Facility (Standing Stone) near Towanda, Pennsylvania.
The system is expected to be commissioned in the third quarter of this year. Opened in 2013, Eureka’s Standing Stone facility provides regional energy producers with advanced wastewater treatment services for raw oil and gas brines.
In addition to the initial system installation at Standing Stone, the JV will focus on growing lithium output and deploying additional rapid recovery systems across the Marcellus and Utica shale formations.
This will include scaling up the lithium output at Standing Stone, deploying additional systems to other Eureka facilities and identifying new installation sites at third-party treatment facilities.
MGX Minerals develops rapid lithium extraction technology
MGX Minerals has developed a rapid lithium extraction technology that significantly removes physical footprint and investment needed for large, multi-phase, lake-sized, lined evaporation ponds.
Compared to traditional solar evaporation, the technology is also claimed to enhance lithium extraction quality and recovery across a complex range of brines, and can also be applied to oil and gas produced water, natural brine, lithium-rich mine brine and industrial plant wastewater.
“MGX may utilize its petrolithium technology for lithium and other valued products production without first establishing mineral reserves supported by an independent technical report or completing a feasibility study.
“A production decision without the benefit of a technical report independently establishing mineral resources or reserves and any feasibility study demonstrating economic and technical viability creates increased uncertainty and heightens economic and technical risks of failure. Historically, such projects have a much higher risk of economic or technical failure,” the company said.
Eureka will retain exclusive rights to develop all the JV relationships with third-party facilities within the Marcellus and Utica shall formations for a period of five years, initially. Both parties will have mutual discretion to further extend the JV for up to four additional years after the initial period.