The brine contains lithium, a silvery white metal essential for making electric vehicle batteries and in high demand as the world shifts to green energy.
Eramet is being closely watched by competitors from the U.S. to Chile that are also working to commercialize DLE.
It aims to pump out its first ton of lithium carbonate in November and scale up to 24,000 metric tons a year by mid-2025.
The technique allows Eramet to produce a ton of lithium carbonate in one week, versus a year with traditional methods.
"You go step by step, making sure you can get to the next phase," said engineer Soledad Gamarra.
Persons:
Eramet, Christel Bories, Joe Lowry, Soledad Gamarra, Mara Puntano, John Li, Tsingshan, Bories, Daina Beth Solomon, Salar Centenario, Ernest Scheyder, Lucila Sigal, Veronica Brown, Richard Chang
Organizations:
Reuters, Battery Metals, Initiative for, Mining Assurance, America, Thomson
Locations:
SALAR CENTENARIO, Argentina, Argentina's, U.S, Chile, Salta, Rio Tinto, South, Eramet's Centenario, Eramet's, Salt Lake City, U.S ., Utah, China, Asia, Salar, Houston