Piedmont Lithium has (earlier publish) chosen Etowah, Tennessee as the placement of the corporate’s deliberate 30,000 metric ton per yr (tpy) LHP2 lithium hydroxide operation (“Tennessee Lithium”). Deliberate completion and begin of manufacturing is in 2025.
The mission will convert spodumene focus sourced principally from Piedmont’s worldwide mission investments to broaden considerably the US provide of lithium hydroxide, a key part within the manufacturing of EV batteries.
Conceptual design of the 30,000 TPY Tennessee Lithium plant
Piedmont’s Tennessee Lithium facility must be among the many first lithium hydroxide crops constructed with the Metso:Outotec course of. This course of eliminates the acid-leaching of spodumene and the manufacturing sodium sulfate waste, which is able to make Tennessee Lithium one of many world’s most sustainable lithium hydroxide operations, based on the corporate.
Tennessee Lithium’s manufacturing goal of 30,000 tpy of lithium hydroxide will complement the corporate’s deliberate Carolina Lithium operation to deliver Piedmont’s estimated whole US-based manufacturing capability to 60,000 tpy by 2026. Present whole US manufacturing of lithium hydroxide is simply 15,000 tpy.
The mission’s location in Tennessee was chosen for its cooperative authorities relations, entry to glorious infrastructure together with rail, highway and river transportation, a gifted workforce, a constructive enterprise local weather, in addition to its proximity to the battery and automotive crops being constructed by potential clients, and the Firm’s headquarters and Carolina Lithium mission, each in Gaston County, North Carolina.
Entrance-Finish Engineering Design (FEED) for Tennessee Lithium might be carried out by Kiewit and Primero. FEED will conclude in H1 2023 and place Piedmont to signal an EPC contract for the development of Tennessee Lithium upon completion of allowing and mission financing actions. As a part of FEED, Kiewit and Primero are anticipated to finish a Definitive Feasibility Research (DFS) for Tennessee Lithium by the tip of 2022.
Based mostly on prior research, Piedmont plans to take a position roughly $600 million within the improvement of the operation. The Tennessee Lithium Mission is predicted to drive vital financial exercise and create roughly 120 new, direct jobs.
The timeline for the development of the Firm’s international portfolio of 4 tasks and estimated begin of manufacturing date for every facility is as follows:
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2023: Québec Mission / North American Lithium restart—SC6 manufacturing deliberate for H1 2023
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2024: Ghana Mission—spodumene focus; preliminary feasibility research (PFS) Q3 2022
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2025: Tennessee Lithium—lithium hydroxide manufacturing from Ghana and/or NAL focus
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2026: Carolina Lithium—built-in spodumene focus and lithium hydroxide manufacturing
Growth of every of the deliberate tasks relies upon receipt of permits vital for building and operations in addition to mission financing.
