A little while ago, a meme circulated
showing a comparison between a lithium mine and an oilsands
operation. The point of the meme was supposed to be that oilsands
operations are more environmentally friendly than lithium mines,
which produce the lithium necessary for the rechargeable batteries used for electric cars and other "green" products.
Like many political memes, however, the
images chosen and the point this meme made was mostly fake. The image of the “lithium mine” was
actually an open pit copper mine, and the image of the oilsands was
an in situ process, much more photogenic than the Fort McMurray
oilsands which some people have infamously compared to Tolkein's Mordor.
The funny thing is, it also turns out our
local oilfields are actually one of the best places in the world to
find lithium. Just like natural gas used to be, lithium-rich brine is a waste
product of Alberta's oil operations.
That means mining lithium in Alberta
doesn't actually require any new mines or building lots of new
infrastructure. Instead, it can be done by processing lithium from
the brine already coming out of our oilfields, using the power,
highways, wells and other infrastructure already in place.
This is a huge potential win-win for
the industry, since the extracted brine is a waste product that is
expensive for oil companies to get rid of, and is currently being treated before being put right back into the ground. Lithium companies hope to get involved
in that process, removing the lithium from the brine, which means the
lithium can then be sold for profit, while also saving money for
oilfield companies who will no longer have to treat their brine
themselves.
A shift towards adding lithium production into our oilfields is therefore quite possibly the key to a
bright new economic future for Alberta. Both our played out existing oilfields and oilfields that are still producing a lot of barrels could eventually host new operations to extract lithium, and help drive the global move toward electric vehicles and green energy - while making millions for our economy.
Almost any graph you care to look at shows lithium prices skyrocketing as the global demand for
lithium-ion batteries increases. Tesla has helped bring about this
change, thanks to products like their new electric semis with
million-mile warranties. CEO Elon Musk has already stated he
will buy up any and every lithium ion produced for his factories, and
as demand is already beginning to outstrip supply, it's driving a new
rush to find fresh sources of lithium.
Lithium is therefore shaping up to be the boom of
the future, as it rapidly becomes the world's hottest commodity. And
while no one knows exactly how much lithium is in Alberta because no
one has been looking for it until now, estimates put reserves in the
Sturgeon oilfield near Valleyview alone as possibly the fifth largest
in the world.
“Government studies have shown
lithium potential for Cambrian to Triassic formation waters in
Alberta. Particularly, lithium-rich brines occur in Devonian
formations in the Fox Creek, Leduc, and Swan Hills areas in
west-central Alberta,” according to the Alberta Geological Survey in information available on the AER's website.
As Jared Lazerson, president and chief
executive officer of MGX Minerals said in this fascinating article about the wildcatters and mavericks chasing this new energy metal, “We have in
Alberta the oilsands of lithium.”
Several Canadian companies are already racing to
find ways to extract lithium from waste brine without needing to dry
it in the desert sun, the main way it is extracted in other areas of
the world. Since most of this activity is taking place in the oilfields
near Fox Creek and Valleyview, the Peace region is uniquely
positioned to take advantage of this emerging market.
Vancouver-based MGX Minerals is the
first company to successfully produce lithium from heavy oil
evaporator blowdown wastewater (EBD), a byproduct of SAGD oilsands
production. However MGX is not alone by any means. Noram Ventures , Canadian International Minerals (CIM), and E3 Metals among others have all been taking steps towards commercial lithium production since last year.
Even Ironstone Resources, which made
local headlines over the last few years for their operation focused on producing steel and other products from iron-vanadium deposits near
Hines Creek, is now looking into extracting lithium from brines reported to exist in the company's own southern Clear Hills permits.
While all of the technological
challenges have not yet been solved in this brand-new industry, and
it may take time for lithium production to become completely
economically viable in Alberta, it's something Albertans should definitely be
looking at as we begin to emerge from the recent crash in oil prices. It may be the forward-thinking new industry we need to emerge once again as an energy leader, and both investors and local companies should consider doing some research to see how to get on board.
After all, Albertans have never been afraid to
pioneer and innovate, and that spirit is what led to the development
of our oilfields and oilsands in the first place. Perhaps now that spirit of enterprise
and innovation can help us transition into a boom in lithium production, as Canadian companies find new ways to
extract this suddenly lucrative resource.
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