Evaporation ponds for lithium extraction are seen at the Salar de Uyuni, a vast white salt flat at the center of a global resource race for the battery metal lithium, outside Uyuni, Bolivia, March 26, 2022. Image captured by a drone. REUTERS/Claudia Morales/File Photo/File Photo
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July 22 (Reuters) – Private equity firm Global Emerging Markets Group said it plans to invest $450 million in lithium startup EnergyX, which is trying to revitalize its business prospects in Bolivia as it recovers Prepared for IPO by 2024.
EnergyX is one of several companies developing its own version of direct lithium extraction (DLE) technology with the goal of producing the metal at lower cost and with a smaller environmental footprint than traditional open pit mines and evaporation ponds.
None of these technologies, including EnergyX’s, have worked on a commercial scale. Still, automakers and investors believe that one or more DLE technologies could eventually boost global lithium production. Ford Motor Co (FN) on Thursday signed two DLE-focused supply deals. Continue reading
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“A tech-heavy ESG company mining in emerging markets is a rare find,” said Jonathan Collins of the Global Emerging Markets Group (GEM) of EnergyX.
EnergyX has 36 months after the IPO to cash in on the $450 million pledged by GEM. GEM will receive shares reflecting the value of EnergyX’s shares at the time of each drawing. GEM will also receive warrants on EnergyX at an undisclosed exercise price.
EnergyX CEO Teague Egan said the funding will give the company a “war chest” for developing lithium projects in emerging markets.
GEM pursued a similar investment strategy with Surf Air Mobility Group in 2020, though the electric aircraft company has yet to go public. It also invests in pawnshop operator Pawn Plus Inc and other companies.
EnergyX, which previously raised $15.5 million through a private round of financing and crowdfunding, announced Thursday that it separately plans to raise up to $75 million in a private offering to retail investors.
Bolivian officials disqualified EnergyX from a DLE technology selection process earlier this year after EnergyX submitted production data 10 minutes after the deadline. Egan took responsibility for the delay. Continue reading
Earlier this year, the company shipped a shipping container filled with its DLE pilot equipment from Texas to Bolivia via the Panama Canal. Continue reading
This meant EnergyX was the only DLE company to test its technology on the lithium-rich brines in Bolvia’s remote Salar de Uyuni. Egan thinks this could help his case as he tries to convince the government to change their minds.
GEM declined to comment on EnergyX’s Bolivia bid. The South American country, which has the world’s largest lithium reserves, is expected to make a final DLE decision by December. Continue reading
“I absolutely believe we still have a chance in Bolivia,” said Egan. “If they have a change of heart and want to use EnergyX as a service provider or have any type of business structure, we’re open to that.”
Bolivian Vice Minister of High Energy Technologies Alvaro Arnez, who oversees the country’s lithium development, did not respond to a request for comment.
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Reporting by Ernest Scheyder; additional reporting by Marcelo Rochabrun; Adaptation by Amran Abocar and David Gregorio
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