An interesting interview from 2017 with a guy who lives in the...

An interesting interview from 2017 with a guy who lives in the locality and did some studies about this specific extraction in 2000s.
I'm no export so I don't know what to make make of it. Apparently they want/wanted to use a new technology, never used on a large scale - because other well-known technologies are too dirty and with too much waste.


(sorry, it's google autotranslate from Czech into English)

The ore in Cínovec, the so-called cinvaldite, has a low lithium content, so it is not worth transporting it far. Czech scientists have come up with a new procedure for processing lithium concentrate with virtually no waste. In the laboratory, this procedure works well, but we are waiting for stress tests in operation, explains Vu Nguyen Hong, head of the chemical metallurgy group at the Institute of Metallic Materials and Corrosion Engineering of the University of Chemical Technology in Prague.

All poems about the billion-dollar profits of lithium, but its extraction and modification is certainly not as simple a process as it seems at first glance. How is it adjusted?

After mining, the ore must be converted to a mica concentrate with a lithium content of about 1.2 to 1.4 percent. Theoretically, a maximum of 1.7 percent lithium can be achieved, which is due to the chemical composition of cinvaldite, but the treatment will be extremely expensive.

What is the most difficult part of lithium production?

The hardest problem is the conversion of lithium from mica concentrate to water-soluble compounds and their processing into battery grade lithium carbonate, mainly due to the low lithium content in this concentrate and the content of other elements contained in the concentrate. There is currently no industrial plant in the world for the processing of cinvaldite concentrate into lithium carbonate. However, several different methods have been tested on a laboratory or even large-scale scale.

Which methods?

There are basically two ways to process cinvaldite concentrate: sintering and leaching. Cinvaldite is mixed with the reagents and the mixture is sintered at high temperatures. After sintering, the product - sintered - is leached in water, where lithium enters. The leachate, the lithium-containing leach solution, is then further processed to lithium compounds. In leaching methods, the concentrate is leached in mineral acids. Sulfuric acid is used in Canada and hydrochloric acid in Germany. Lithium is leached into solution together with other metals. The leachate is then refined and lithium compounds and other products, mainly potassium, iron or aluminum compounds, are separated.

And more?

So far, the furthest technology is from Lepidico, which has patented a leaching process in sulfuric acid. Anzaplan then tested the sintering with sodium sulphate, which is recycled and reused after obtaining lithium carbonate. All methods envisage obtaining other accompanying elements such as potassium in the form of sulphate or chloride as fertilizer. Otherwise, production would not be economical.

So how expensive is production?

The operating cost of producing 1 kilogram of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) using the two methods is around $ 3.5 to $ 4.5, with a maximum of $ 5. One kilogram of LCE obtained from brine costs about $ 2.5 to $ 3.5. These calculations were based on high-volume tests. In practice, however, a pilot plant has yet to be built, which is very expensive. Only after field tests will it be shown whether the given technology is continuous or not.

Can you imagine that the mined ore could be processed by an existing Czech factory? Or would a brand new operation have to grow?

If lithium is converted from cinvaldite into water-soluble compounds, the recovery of lithium carbonate is quite simple and known. Every chemical plant, such as the Spolchemie in Ústí nad Labem, Spolana Neratovice or the DIAMO hydrometallurgical plant in Dolní Rožínka, should be able to do this. Although existing technologies will have to be modified, the investment will not be so high.

What is the profitability of the treatment from lithium carbonate to a battery product? And how does the process actually work?

I do not know the exact margin of the electrode manufacturers, but I do not think it is high. I type 5 to 10 percent. There are hundreds of these manufacturers in the world, mainly in Asia, China, Japan and Korea. In Europe, for example, I know Umicore. The competition is high. Lithium is found in batteries in two components, the cathode mass and the electrolyte. The cathode mass is prepared by calcination of lithium carbonate or hydroxide with other oxides such as cobalt, nickel or manganese. The electrolyte then contains lithium salts and other organic compounds.

Could one of the Czech billionaires or, for example, the Chinese, who pretend to be hegemony on the market, participate in this?

So far, I don't see our billionaires actually investing in lithium at the moment. Maybe it's premature for them so far, because they usually invest in an established business. The situation will be different if the feasibility study shows that production will be economical. In this case, I see the possibility of financing the construction of the plant and production. The same goes for the Chinese. They have about thirty percent of the market. They mainly process imported concentrates from Australia and Canada.

So you're an optimist?

At present, I see the possibility of lithium carbonate production in the Czech Republic slightly optimistic. We came up with a new procedure for economically processing lithium concentrate practically without waste and with the use of all components. Now we have a very demanding verification of the technology on a pilot scale. Only then will it become clear whether this procedure will work just as well on an industrial scale. The procedure works well in the laboratory. It will be great if the new technology successfully crosses the so-called "valley of death", as is sometimes called a successful pilot verification. Unfortunately, I can't tell you more now.

How significant is the Czech lithium deposit?

It is important, but cinvaldite has a low lithium content, so it is not worth transporting it far at all, for example to Australia or China. Australians themselves export lithium concentrates with three times higher lithium content than the Czech concentrate.

How are the neighboring states?

Neighboring states are also investing in lithium deposits. European Lithium, for example, in Austria, and in February this year, Bacanora Minerals agreed with the German company Solarworld on a joint lithium mining project on the German side of Cínovec. Bacanora Minerals will use their proven technology in Mexico to process cinvaldite. For information, Bacanora Minerals has signed a contract with Tesla to supply lithium for battery production at the Gigafactory plant in Nevada, USA. The Germans realized the importance of the lithium deposit on their territory very quickly. The Federal Government and the Government of Saxony have set aside tens of millions of euros for an initiative to develop lithium mining and production technologies. I remember that from 2007 to 2009 we were approached by colleagues from Germany asking for advice. Now they are at least as good as we are. I dare say that they have overtaken us in some things.

Is there another problem with Czech lithium?

There is another fundamental problem with Czech cinvaldite. This is associated with a fee for the extraction of rubidium. There is about one percent rubidium in cinvaldite. And if, for example, 1000 tons of lithium are mined, which corresponds to about 6000 tons of LCE, about 900 to 1000 tons of rubidium will also be produced. The fee for extracting 1 kilogram of rubidium is over 114 thousand crowns (rubidium reacts extremely quickly and explosively with oxygen to superoxide rubidium and water to rubidium hydroxide and in nature we therefore encounter it only in the form of compounds - ed. Note). And the world demand for rubidium is only 2 to 4 tons per year. For miners, it would be a liquidation matter. For comparison, the fee for one kilogram of gold is around 40 thousand crowns. We have written an open letter to Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotek, but so far we have no response.


Obviously since 2017 some things have changed. E.g. he had mentioned there is no interest from local investors/billionaires. That kinda changed because 1) Krupa Investments / Pavol Krupa wanted to buy out the shares 2) RSJ / Karel Janecek bought the tailings/disposal site (which is however a different project). It is also possible that the ČEZ involvement was partly thanks to Krupa because he had some connections there.

Some things haven't changed at all, they still want to use some technology which I don't understand and which hasn't been used anywhere else. Also if they would have to pay the rubidium extraction tax, that would destroy the entire economy of the project (at least that's what he said).