27/03/26
UK DLE projects push for simpler Li buildouts
London, 27 March (Argus) — Direct lithium extraction (DLE) projects will only
achieve cashflow if flowsheets become simpler and early engineering is more
disciplined, delegates heard on day two of the UK Direct Lithium Extraction
Summit in Slough this week. Investors still focus on the reinjection stage,
treating it as the main project risk, even when extraction workstreams perform
well, UK developer Weardale Lithium's chief executive Stewart Dickson said. That
focus pushes developers into a familiar dilemma. Either compress engineering
schedules to hit funding windows — the "compress and repent later" approach that
risks redesign downstream — or slow development to prove out the flowsheet
before seeking capital, he said. This caution persists, even though lithium
projects carry a far heavier front end metallurgical load than gold or copper
projects, Dickson added. He also pointed to a mismatch between perceived and
actual funding appetite, in that the UK and EU sit in the lowest formal risk
bracket, yet capital flows readily into regions assumed to be less stable. Local
resistance adds another drag, although public pushback has long shaped project
pacing across Europe. These factors make a clear, early flowsheet essential,
especially at a demonstration scale, Dickson said. The case for non-integrated
Li projects A similar point was made from the refining end of the chain by Gemma
Cooper, chief commercial officer at UK lithium refinery project Tees Valley
Lithium. Many upstream developers attempt too many steps at once, aiming for
battery-grade output from the start and carrying extraction, first stage
refining and original equipment manufacturing (OEM) qualification risk in a
single project team, she said. This has resulted in missed milestones and
capital intensity that, in some cases, has climbed towards $100,000/t, rather
than the roughly $10,000/t global average. A split model — upstream firms
producing a technical grade carbonate and passing material to a specialist
refiner — cuts risk and shortens timelines, Cooper said. Tees Valley Lithium has
secured trader feedstock arrangements and early UK supply partnerships, giving
the refinery flexibility while upstream firms avoid building every process block
themselves. And qualification does not need to run for several years, Cooper
said, adding that some OEMs complete approvals in around six months, when
volumes and specifications are stable. Producers weigh increasing DLE technology
options With many UK projects still at the pilot or pre-pilot stage, brine
chemistry remains the first constraint. Absorption systems are currently the
most widely deployed DLE route, but they tend to use more water and energy, and
their performance drops when brine chemistry shifts. These limits are driving
interest in more selective membrane or electrochemical systems, research firm
IDTechEx's tech analyst Daniel Parr said. Although none will perform reliably
without tight pre-treatment and thorough sampling. One electrochemical route
came from Australian lithium tech developer ElectraLith. The company's
container-based system removes most water and reagent needs and delivers
hydroxide directly, chief executive Charlie McGill said, helping place the
approach at the low end of cost curves when modelled on brines tested so far.
Upcoming pilot units in Western Australia, the Lithium Triangle and the UK will
show how far this process can simplify the final flowsheet, McGill said.
Flowsheet remains defining bottleneck Flowsheet design itself remains the
defining bottleneck. Most pilot failures stem not from a weak extraction step,
but from poor integration between pre-treatment, extraction and polishing
stages, ILiAD Technologies' commercial director Esteban Soto said. Failure often
occurs because developers combine DLE packages that were never designed to run
together. The only solid route through that challenge is sampling, according to
Elena Gil Aunon, water manager at lithium refining partner Worley. Early samples
and bench scale work are needed to catch silica, scaling and fouling risks that
can undermine both DLE units and downstream membranes, Gil Aunon said. By Chris
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