Lithium news picks up

In May the Journal-Sun did an article titled “Could Cass County See the Next Big Boon”. Which made Cass County and area communities the spot of the highest certified lithium-grade brine. Which was taken from a sample of a repurposed oil well outside McLeod. Since then, the narrative is now quickly picking up steam.

Before, the original article information was only slowly trickling in. This in part was because at the time the story was written brine leases were not regulated in Texas. That changed with the passage of SB 1186, by Senator Bryan Hughes, which passed the Texas Legislature and was signed by Governor Abbott effective May 27, 2023, only days before the final draft of the article was released. With the passage of the bill, the Texas Railroad Commission now has jurisdiction over brine mining including the authority to regulate brine production and brine injection wells.

At the time of the Journal-Sun’s original article on lithium, few (including the publisher of the paper) had heard little about the discovery of lithium brine in the region. That changed as companies began to approach landowners about selling their mineral rights to extract the Lithium. One such property owner who had been involved in researching the topic for some time approached the Journal-Sun about doing a story, to make the area residents aware and to inform property owners to be properly informed about mineral leases.

Since then news has been moving at a fast pace, with still a lot in the air here in Texas. Though many believe that the Ark-La-Tex region can continue to see news happening quickly and steadily over the next year. Many experts that the Journal-Sun has spoken to are expecting that lithium could very well change the economic landscape of the region.

One expert who some fondly call the godfather of lithium, John Burba, founder and chief technology officer of IBAT recently communicated that estimation in an interview set to be released in the following Wednesday’s Cass County Citizens Journal Sun.

Here are some snippets of press releases over the last couple of months that affect lithium in Texas and the Arklatex Region.

Arkansas Times (August 7, 2024)

South Arkansas landowners, lithium extractors clash over royalty rates Albemarle Corporation, ExxonMobil, Standard Lithium, Lanxess and Tetra Technologies Inc. filed a joint application July 26 to set a royalty rate of 1.82%. The joint proposal comes after owners of large parcels of land in south Arkansas, represented by the South Arkansas Minerals Association, protested the initial royalty rate proposed by Lanxess and Standard Lithium. They demanded a 12.5% royalty instead.

“This application offers a clear and transparent framework for compensating brine royalty owners and provides a consistent approach for the lithium industry in South Arkansas. The application proposes a rate that incentivizes investment while also fairly compensating royalty owners,” Albemarle Corporation said in an emailed statement to Arkansas Times. “We look forward to discussing this proposal with the Arkansas Oil and Gas Commission in September.” ------ www.ogj.com (August 7, 2024) ExxonMobil completes appraisal drilling in quest to become leading lithium supplier Exxon Mobil Corp. has completed the appraisal drilling phase of its plan to produce lithium from saltwater brine in the Smackover Formation in southwest Arkansas.

O ver the course of six months, the company has drilled eight wells with over 82,000 total ft. drilled and collected about 1,000 ft of core samples, said Dan Ammann, ExxonMobil president (in regards to) low-carbon solutions, in a post to his LinkedIn account Aug. 7.

The operator plans to become a major producer of lithium for batteries in electric vehicles (EVs) and other rechargeable products, he said. ------ mining.com (August 1, 2024) Standard Lithium names David Park as CEO Canadian miner Standard Lithium on Thursday named David Park as its new chief executive officer, effective Sept. 1, succeeding longtime CEO Robert Mintak.

The incoming CEO has served as a strategic advisor for Standard Lithium over the past year and helped the lithium miner secure an investment from Equinor in projects located in Southwest Arkansas and East Texas. ------ POLITICO LLC E&E News (August 1, 2024)

Senate panel approves heat, battery, conservation bills POLITICO LLC E&E News reported that in August legislation was introduced that would require standards for Lithium Batteries.

The panel approved Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand’s (D-N.Y.) S. 1008, the “Setting Consumer Standards for Lithium-Ion Batteries Act,” which would require the Consumer Product Safety Commission to promulgate safety rules for rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. The House passed similar legislation, H.R. 1797, in May.

Ranking member Ted Cruz (R-Texas) introduced an amendment to limit the CPSC’s work. He said the agency was “operating outside of its authority.” ------ mugglehead.com (Jul 29, 2024) Big oil is taking advantage of lithium opportunities

Notes that several oil companies are becoming partners in what some call green energy. Among them include ExxonMobil and Chevron with Exxon already signing agreements in the Ark-La-Tex region.

“ExxonMobil signed a preliminary agreement last month to send lithium to South Korea-based SK On, a battery maker building plants to supply Hyundai and Ford in the United States. This agreement follows ExxonMobil’s USD$100 million purchase of drilling rights on 485 sq. km of lithium brine assets in Arkansas’ Smackover Formation from Galvanic Energy. In a pilot project, ExxonMobil has already produced some lithium.” ------ Biden admin sees the US becoming a big lithium exporter. Is that possible? (July 12, 2024) The Biden administration is expressing confidence that the U.S. can become a lithium exporter — a claim that some experts say is unrealistic.

“In lithium, we’ll probably be exporting by early next decade,” said Jigar Shah, director of the Energy Department’s Loan Programs Office, to attendees at a U.S. Chamber of Commerce event late last month.

Lithium, a key ingredient of the rechargeable batteries that make electric vehicles possible, is widely considered a key resource of the 21st century and is today mostly exported from Australia, Chile and China. The U.S. could hypothetically join their ranks, but numerous economic, policy and environmental challenges stand in the way. ------ Cass County Citizens Journal Sun (July 3, 2024)

Liger Interests opens regional office for Lithium exploration projects Liger Interests (“Liger”), a leading lithium exploration company in the area announced in late June that it is opening a field office in downtown Atlanta, Texas, located at 116 N. East Street. The office will serve as the headquarters for the company’s operations in the region and will help facilitate its commitment to forming personal partnerships with landowners.

The Liger team has deep ties and experience in Cass County and the surrounding area. James Brooks, Mayor of Atlanta and a partner of Liger, stated “The team at Liger understands land stewardship and that a major component of this effort is trust and as your “righthand man” I look forward to working with families to discover and produce lithium right here.” The field office will be led by James and his team in Atlanta who are actively working to lease lithium interests. ------ energyx.com (June 7, 2024) Energy Exploration Technologies Inc. (EnergyX) announced in June a major lithium project.

Project Lonestar Lithium, located in the “Ark-La-Tex” region, will have a target lithium production of 5,000 tons/year in Phase 1, and 25,000 tons/year in Phase 2. Currently, the largest active lithium plant in the US produces 5,000 tons/year, underscoring the vast potential of Project Lonestar to ramp up US lithium production. Earlier in 2023, EnergyX closed its Series B financing from strategic institutional partners including General Motors and POSCO, who have first rights to portions of EnergyX’s lithium production offtake.