Equinor enters partnership with Standard Lithium
(UTC)Last modified
![Aerial footage of the Southwest Arkansas project](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.equinor.com%2Fimages%2Fh61q9gi9%2Fglobal%2Fd7941ecafb13802f4dd3b123aa5d511cc083ede9-4128x3094.jpg%3Frect%3D0%2C907%2C4128%2C2064%26w%3D1420%26h%3D710%26q%3D100%26auto%3Dformat&w=3840&q=75)
Aerial footage of the Southwest Arkansas project
Photo: Standard Lithium
Equinor has entered into an agreement with Standard Lithium Ltd to acquire a 45% share in two lithium project companies in Southwest Arkansas and East Texas.
Mineral extraction from brines
- DLE is a method of producing lithium from lithium-rich saltwater typically from deep underground reservoirs which cannot be used for drinking or agriculture purposes
- Lithium is separated from other brine constituents, like sodium, calcium and magnesium, by bringing the brine into contact with a medium designed to selectively attract the lithium
- DLE is a technology that extracts lithium from brines located deep underground and reinjects the brine without lithium back into the subsurface through a second injector well
- DLE technologies produce a high purity lithium concentrate which can be converted into battery grade lithium chemicals using conventional processing technologies
- Integrated DLE processes typically consist of five main steps: pre-treatment, DLE, concentration, purification and crystallisation
- Equinor began testing DLE technologies in 2018 to build an understanding of how to scale-up including pre-treatment of subsurface brines and processing to battery grade lithium chemicals.
In 2021, Equinor Ventures invested in Lithium de France which is developing DLE and geothermal projects in France.