POSCO Holdings to Advance US 'Clay Lithium' Project with Australian Company

Business Cooperation MOU with Australian Jindalri Resources
Developing Lithium Extraction Process Using Clay Lithium

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Hyung-gil] POSCO Holdings is advancing a project to extract lithium, a key battery material, from clay in the United States.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

POSCO Holdings announced on the 14th that it signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Australian company Jindalee Resources regarding this matter. Jindalee Resources, headquartered in Perth, Australia, is a mineral exploration and development specialist company that holds 100% equity in the McDermitt clay lithium project located on the border of Oregon and Nevada in the western United States.

Under this agreement, Jindalee Resources will drill and supply clay lithium from the U.S. mining site, while POSCO Holdings will jointly develop optimal lithium extraction process technology with the Pohang Institute of Industrial Science and Technology (RIST) and conduct a feasibility study.

Lithium, a core material for secondary batteries, is distributed in ores, salt lakes, clay, and oilfield brine. Until now, lithium has mainly been extracted from ores and brine. However, there have been no commercial production cases from clay or oilfield brine yet.

Recently, large-scale deposits have been reported in North America, and with technological advancements and additional exploration, production is expected to increase dramatically, making these new lithium resources a promising future source.

If the commercialization potential of the clay lithium extraction process is confirmed, the two companies plan to discuss business cooperation, including joint investment in the McDermitt project.

In particular, with the implementation of the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), if the McDermitt clay lithium project leads to local investment, it is expected to secure IRA benefits and gain a favorable position in the lithium business.

Since 2010, POSCO Holdings has been developing technology to extract lithium from brine, ore, and spent batteries in collaboration with RIST. Commercial production plants are under construction in Gwangyang and Argentina. The Gwangyang lithium plant, with an annual capacity of 43,000 tons, is scheduled for completion by the end of this year, and two lithium plants in Argentina, each with an annual capacity of 25,000 tons, are expected to be completed sequentially in 2024 and 2025.

A POSCO Holdings official stated, "Based on world-class lithium extraction technology and operational know-how, we are conducting long-term research and development and investment reviews on next-generation lithium resources, including clay lithium in North America, oilfield brine, and geothermal brine."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.