Good News & Bad News, page-44800

Fact check. Sodium batteries are currently more expensive to produce than LiFePO₄ cells. They also have less cycle life, are obviously heavier (DRRR, 11 on the periodic table with an atomic weight 3x that of Lithium) and a much lower energy density. Whatever they do with the Na chemistry, it will always be behind advancements in Li chemistry. Elementary school education covers the periodic table enough for children to understand the difference between 3 and 11.

Even the simpletons amongst us know second class sodium batteries are only viable in some cases like ESS, in a $80000 LCE market.

Yep, Lithium has several different sources and still they won't have enough. Many of those different sources are much higher on the cost curve, which ultimately means that low cost producers will make higher margins. DLE is bespoke with several different extraction methods. Absorption, ion-exchange, solvent based etc. Each of these extraction methods has several different bespoke requirements depending on the mineralogy of the Lithium resource. This explains why, to date, minimal DLE projects are producing commercial, scaled up quantities of Lithium. Maybe next decade, deep pocketed companies like Exxon will successfully produce Lithium at scale, with unknown Billions spent in developing the technology. Then, after they successfully do it in the Smackover, they will have to spend billions all over again, for another bespoke process in a different location.

Clay? Let's see how the Thacker Pass thing goes. Currently, the prices aren't making that project attractive.

Leshitolite? Name speaks for itself. The poor cousin of Lithium, as Sodium cells are to Li-ion cells.

Brine? How many more evaporation ponds will they allow. Apparently Chile requires all new projects to have a DLE component in the extraction method. See above with regards to DLE Capex. Was it LKE who had $33000 pt of LCE in their feasability.

Chile again, state owned Codalco now the majority owner of any new projects.

This all augurs well for the likes of PLS, who will keep pumping out millions of tonnes at a low cash cost.

The list of hoops to jump through for new projects is too long to cover here.

Meanwhile, in the Pilgangoora.

Standing by for the 2025 mineral resource update after they start drilling out the new leases to the east of the current plant, spitting distance away from the PLS, state of the art plant, with freshly commissioned ore sorter, the largest of its type in the southern hemisphere, ready to supply ore into the soon to be completed P1000 expansion and new midstream demonstration plant for the 36% Lithium salt.

I know why you are here. You like us because we are a credible source of information for all things Lithium and PLS is shaping up to be one of the worlds biggest low cost producers.