Infinity goes hi-tech at Spanish lithium project

ASX-listed Infinity Lithium Corporation looks to be advancing its San José lithium project in Spain, with the company’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Infinity GreenTech, progressing test work for a “cutting-edge” lithium hydrometallurgical conversion process. The company says its latest venture follows good recoveries of lithium from open circuit test work on its lithium mica style of mineralisation.

Infinity is now proceeding to bench-scale test work that it says will inform the key process design criteria. The company expects to have the work wrapped up by early next year.

Alongside its small-scale test work, Infinity is also accelerating the development of its pilot-scale activities, consummating deals with a suite of specialist suppliers to tie down equipment it says will fast-track its laboratory and pilot-scale test work programs.

The company will use the bench and pilot-scale test work to investigate a pair of complementary processes that will use run-of-mine lithium-bearing mica ore from the company’s San José lithium project.

Infinity GreenTech also intends to broaden the scope of its test-work to evaluate the effectiveness of its process in treating other lithium-bearing materials. The test work will be kicked off by an evaluation of lithium-bearing micas including lepidolite and zinnwaldite, lithium-containing clays such as hectorite and complex substances such as jadeite.

Interestingly, Infinity GreenTech says its process can be downsized and thus could be used to exploit small-scale resources through on-site processing.

The Perth-based company originally kicked-off its potentially game-changing lithium processing venture after a comprehensive review of alternative extractive technologies for its Spanish lithium project. The review put the spotlight on a handful of alternative processing technologies that offered up a spate of technical, financial and environmental benefits when compared to conventional methods.

Infinity’s new lithium conversion process will utilise renewable energies to convert lithium raw materials to lithium chemicals and will be underpinned by reduced energy inputs and the use of readily available non-toxic reagents that are both low cost and recyclable.

The company says figures from earlier test work confirmed the recoverability of lithium solution from run-of-mine feedstock of between 60 and 70 per cent lithium from direct processing. Interestingly, the figures are bereft of any process optimisations, which Infinity believes could promote even better recoverability.

Infinity is something of a trailblazer in the European lithium space. Unlike western countries that mostly mine lithium in spodumene mineralisation, it is stepping out into micas. Unlike many lithium miners who simply process and send a spodumene concentrate to China for production into lithium chemicals, Infinity is planning to do this on site – and in doing so sidestep all the costs associated with international transport.

Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: matt.birney@businessnews.com.au