Olemedia
International Battery Metals (OTCPK:IBATF) +16.3% in Thursday’s trading after Reuters reported it has become the first company to commercially produce lithium with a unique type of filtration technology, a step expected to usher in cheaper and faster supplies of the metal.
At a site in rural Utah controlled by privately-held U.S. Magnesium, IBAT (OTCPK:IBATF) this week started producing commercial volumes of lithium at a rate of nearly 5K metric tons/year using its version of a direct lithium extraction technology, according to the report.
IBAT (OTCPK:IBATF), which developed its DLE plant to be portable, essentially has beaten Standard Lithium (SLI), Rio Tinto (RIO), Eramet (OTCPK:ERMAF) (OTCPK:ERMAY) and others as the first to hit that mark, the report said.
Analysts expect DLE will grow within a decade into an industry with $10B in annual revenue by transforming the speed and efficiency of lithium production for EV manufacturers and others, much as fracking and horizontal drilling helped boost U.S. oil production.