ElectraLith is developing a filtration technology that can extract lithium from brine deposits without using water or chemicals, which would be key in arid areas like Chile's Atacama desert, and needs only small amounts of energy.

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Charlie and Zal discussed the environmental, social and economic challenges of lithium extraction and refining. For example, did you know that 2.2 million liters of water are consumed, and more than 4,000kg of CO2 are emitted, to produce just 1 ton lithium from salar brines using evaporation methods?

There’s a really cool company out of Australia called Electralith…A company that is doing DLE and Refining could be really signifcant

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Direct lithium extraction (DLE) is the future of global brine production because of its lower costs and environmental impact, according to Australian startup ElectraLith.

CEO Charlie McGill sees the company's "direct lithium extraction and refining" surpassing other DLE methods because it does not need water or chemicals.

ElectraLith is testing brines for major shareholder Rio Tinto's Rincon lithium project in Argentina and is fielding interest from other miners.Direct lithium extraction to spread across all brines – ElectraLith CEO

“We believe ours is the smartest,” says McGill, of the many DLE methods. “It requires no water, no chemicals, it can run on solar and wind, whereas these other processes continue to require water and chemicals and power from the grid.”

McGill is no newcomer to lithium; he served as chief financial officer of Western Australian spodumene aspirant Kidman Resources, shortly before it was acquired by Wesfarmers in 2019. Wesfarmers will start mining and refining the rocks from Kidman’s former Mt Holland mine into lithium hydroxide south of Perth within the next year.

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A direct lithium extraction technology that reportedly negates the need for water and chemicals and will be powered entirely from renewable energy is being developed by an Australian university spin-off company.

ElectraLith has developed a clean, fast, sustainable and cost-effective lithium extraction process that, unlike traditional extraction, does not require evaporation, precipitation, and chemical treatment

Last June, IP Group was a main investor alongside Rio Tinto in ElectraLith, a start-up spun out of Monash University, that is trying to commercialise lithium extraction and refining technology

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Electralith has the potential to process lithium-brine much faster and with a higher purity, while dramatically reducing its environmental footprint

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