Shares in Century Lithium Corp. (TSX-V:LCE, OTCQX:CYDVF) climbed 6% Tuesday after the company reported better-than-expected results from its lithium extraction pilot program at its demonstration plant in Nevada.
Century achieved a 91.6% lithium recovery rate using direct lithium extraction (DLE) technology, a significant improvement over previous benchmarks.
The process produced a lithium eluate concentration of 575 mg/L from a 328 mg/L feed, with a low sodium-to-lithium ratio of 0.6 to 1 — a result that could translate into lower capital and operating costs for its Angel Island project.
The company also reported progress in downstream processing. It produced lithium carbonate with 99.87% purity using specialty membranes and eluate concentrations of 12 to 14 grams per litre.
Samples are currently undergoing third-party testing for suitability in lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries, widely used in energy storage and electric vehicles.
Century is also trialling thermal pretreatment of clay from the Angel Island deposit to potentially reduce hydrochloric acid consumption during processing.
CEO Bill Willoughby said recent test results with technology partner ARi “have exceeded our expectations,” and further testing is underway to optimise the process.