Volt Lithium Corp. (TSXV: VLT | OTCQB: VLTLF)
("
Volt" or the "
Company") is
pleased to announce the achievement of another pivotal milestone on
the path to commercializing its proprietary and proven
next-generation Direct Lithium Extraction (“
DLE”)
technology for processing oilfield brines. The Company has
scaled-up production capacity to 96,0001 litres per day (equivalent
to 600 barrels per day (“bbls”) and (“bbls/d”)) representing a 100
times scale-up in its processing capabilities. Following the
strategic investment from its U.S. partner which closed on May 2,
2024, Volt has scaled-up operations at its field simulation centre
in Calgary, Alberta (the “
Field Simulation
Centre”) in order to build this first field unit for
deployment in Q3 2024.
“The Permian basin currently produces 19 million
barrels of lithium infused brine per day, making it one of the
largest potential sources of lithium in the United States,”
commented Alex Wylie, President & CEO of Volt. “With the
scaling-up of our Field Simulation Centre, we have accelerated the
Company’s trajectory to becoming a significant North American
lithium producer.”
“Volt is on a clear path to become a low-cost
commercial producer of battery-grade lithium from oilfield brines
in North America,” added Dave Kimery, COO of Volt. “The Volt
engineering and operational teams continue to scale-up production
capacity for our proprietary DLE technology. As demand for
high-quality, domestically supplied lithium continues to grow,
Volt’s latest achievement positions us to help meet North America’s
expanding demand for this critical mineral, and to do so in a safe,
environmentally sustainable and lower-impact manner.”
Volt’s Permian Basin
Strategy
Volt has identified the Permian Basin as a key
area to commence Company operations. Today, the Permian Basin
produces 19 million barrels of lithium infused oilfield brine each
day, making it the single largest producer of oilfield brine in
North America. The Permian also has the necessary infrastructure in
place to allow Volt to commence operations without incurring
capital costs to: 1) drill wells; 2) build associated
infrastructure to manage water production; 3) create pipeline
networks to transport water to a production facility; and 4) manage
the overall subsurface reservoir.
Volt’s strategy of partnering with existing
producers is expected to allow the Company to achieve meaningful
cash flow and production growth much sooner than if operating
independently. Further, operating in the Permian will also allow
Volt to commence commercial operations much sooner than would
otherwise be the case, with substantially lower costs and no
exploration risks.
DLE Operational Milestone
Volt continues to accelerate process
improvements realized by the Company’s operations team related to
its proprietary DLE technology at its Field Simulation Centre. With
operations set to commence in Q3 2024, the Company has been focused
on building its field unit for deployment and ensuring operational
success in the field by simulating Permian Basin production
conditions at the Field Simulation Centre.
Volt’s proprietary DLE technology has been
verified by ALS Canada Ltd, a division of ALS Environmental, an
independent third-party and a global leader for independent
testing. Through the scale-up of Volt’s production capacity, the
technical standards of achieving 99% lithium extraction have been
maintained with key associated operational improvements
including:
1) Volume Scale-Up: Volt
successfully scaled-up its system to process over 4,000 litres per
run equating to 96,000 litres per day3 (equivalent to 600 bbls/d)
representing a 100 times scale-up in processing capacity;
2)
Extraction Time Improvements: Volt realized a
reduction in lithium extraction time from oilfield brine to 60
minutes from 120 minutes previously, significantly improving
operational capability and throughput capacity; and
3) Continuous
Processing vs Batch Processing: Volt has designed its
Field Unit to operate 24/7 ensuring continuous lithium extraction
from oilfield brine rather than extracting in batches.
U.S. Field Unit Operations and Future
Commercial Operations
Volt’s field unit built for deployment in Q3
2024, represents a 1:166 scale to future commercial production.
Volt’s field unit is modular based and provides the company with
the ability to scale-up to process commercial levels of brine
through the following methods: (1) add modules to increase
processing capacity; (2) reduced lithium extraction time to
increase volumes; and (3) larger extraction modules.
Based on the historic detailed modelling
completed by the Company’s engineering team, the first full-scale
commercial modularized unit is estimated to be capable of
processing 100,000 bbls/d of brine, which will position Volt as a
near-to-market, low-cost and full-scale commercial producer. Upon
successful results in the field, Volt anticipates scaling up to
full-scale commercial production by the second half of 2025.
The Company’s phased scale-up approach, coupled
with extensive testing at its Field Simulation Centre and strategic
investment partnership, mitigates project execution risk and
accelerates timeline to full-scale commercialization. This plan
minimizes capital at risk and allows for validation of Volt’s
proprietary DLE technology prior to full-scale
commercialization.
Permian Basin Brine
Production
The brine production from the Permian Basin
today is approximately 19 million bbls/d. Assuming average
economics from lithium extraction, sensitivities are as follows at
potential production levels and lithium concentrations 4,5:
Brine Production per day (bbls) |
Lithium Produced per annum (tonnes)(31
mg/L) |
Operating Cash Flow6 per
annum(31 mg/L) ($US) |
Lithium Production per annum (tonnes)(55
mg/L) |
Operating Cash Flow6 per
annum(55 mg/L) ($US) |
100,000 |
970 |
$16,750,000 |
1,720 |
$29,700,000 |
500,000 |
4,850 |
$83,750,000 |
8,600 |
$148,600,000 |
1,000,000 |
9,700 |
$167,500,000 |
17,200 |
$297,200,000 |
2,000,000 |
19,400 |
$335,000,000 |
34,400 |
$594,350,000 |
Qualified Person’s
Statement
Scientific and technical information contained
in this press release has been reviewed and approved by Meghan
Klein, P.Eng of Sproule Associates Limited, whom is a qualified
person within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101 – Standards
of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (“NI 43-101”). Ms. Klein
consents to the inclusion of the data in the form and context in
which it appears.
About Volt
Volt is a lithium development and technology
company aiming to be North America’s first commercial producer of
lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonates from oilfield brine. Our
strategy is to generate value for shareholders by leveraging
management’s hydrocarbon experience and existing infrastructure to
extract lithium deposits from existing wells, thereby reducing
capital costs, lowering risks and supporting the world’s clean
energy transition. With four differentiating pillars, and a
proprietary Direct Lithium Extraction (“DLE”)
technology and process, Volt’s innovative approach to development
is focused on allowing the highest lithium recoveries with lowest
costs, positioning us well for future commercialization. We are
committed to operating efficiently and with transparency across all
areas of the business staying sharply focused on creating
long-term, sustainable shareholder value. Investors and/or other
interested parties may sign up for updates about the Company’s
continued progress on its website: https://voltlithium.com/.
Contact Information
For Investor Relations inquiries or further
information, please contact:
Alex Wylie, President &
CEO T:
+1.403.830.5811E: info@voltlithium.com
Or
Greg Foofat, Vice President, Investor
RelationsT: +1.587.888.5213E: info@voltlithium.com
Forward Looking Statements
This news release includes certain
“forward-looking statements” and “forward-looking information”
within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. When
used in this news release, the words “anticipate”, “believe”,
“estimate”, “expect”, “target”, “plan”, “forecast”, “may”, “will”,
“would”, “could”, “schedule” and similar words or expressions,
identify forward-looking statements or information. Statements,
other than statements of historical fact, may constitute
forward-looking information and include, without limitation,
information with respect to the terms of the operational milestone,
Volume Scale-up. Extraction Time Improvements and Continuous
Processing vs Batch Processing, the deployment of the Field Unit in
the Permian Basin, the production of battery grade lithium by the
Field Unit, and the commercial production of lithium from oilfield
brine. With respect to the forward-looking information contained in
this press release, the Company has made numerous assumptions.
While the Company considers these assumptions to be reasonable,
these assumptions are inherently subject to significant
uncertainties and contingencies and may prove to be incorrect.
Additionally, there are known and unknown risk factors which could
cause the Company’s actual results, performance or achievements to
be materially different from any future results, performance or
achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking
information contained herein including those known risk factors
outlined in the Company’s annual information form dated February
29, 2024 and (final) short form base shelf prospectus dated July
20, 2023. All forward-looking information herein is qualified in
its entirety by this cautionary statement, and the Company
disclaims any obligation to revise or update any such
forward-looking information or to publicly announce the result of
any revisions to any of the forward-looking information contained
herein to reflect future results, events or developments, except as
required by law.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its
Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the
policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for
the adequacy or accuracy of this press release.
1 The figures presented assume continuous production with no
downtime for equipment maintenance or failure.2 The equipment
detection limit for lithium is 2 parts per million. Results below
this limit are assumed to represent 99% recovery.3 The figures
presented assume continuous production with no downtime for
equipment maintenance or failure.4 Assumes pricing of
US$20,000/tonne lithium hydroxide monohydrate and a 2-hour cycle
time5 Based upon Volt’s preliminary estimates processing brine at
lithium concentrations similar to the Permian Basin6 Operating cash
flow is calculated as revenue less operating costs and does not
include taxes or royalties.