Eramet and Électricité de Strasbourg will investigate the production of lithium from geothermal brines in eastern France by 2030.

On 26th January, Eramet and Électricité de Strasbourg (ES) released an announcement that they would investigate the production of up to 10,000tpy lithium carbonate from a geothermal project in eastern France.  The two parties intend to develop lithium production capacity at the site by 2030, joining a growing group of companies developing geothermal projects within the region.  While development of the project remains at an early stage, a final investment decision for the project is expected by 2027.    

In addition to the geothermal project, Eramet is developing the Centenario-Ratones lithium brine operation in Argentina via its subsidiary Eramine.  The Centenario project, jointly developed with Chinese steel giant Tsingshan, has a target capacity of 24,000tpy LCE with first production scheduled for 2024.

Geothermal lithium projects boast some impressive environmental and economic benefits, with energy generation occurring on site and the cost of brine extraction being spread across both energy generation and lithium production.  Despite these advantages, there are currently no commercially operating geothermal operations producing lithium chemicals, with metallurgical processing challenges and a requirement for notable upfront capacity forming the main barriers.