- EIT RawMaterials, supported by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology, a body of the European Union has selected Rock Tech for funding to commercialize novel lithium processing technologies in Germany.
- Rock Tech will collaborate with leading research partners, including Advanced Minerals and Recycling Industrial Solutions (AdMiRIS), National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), and Vlaamse Instelling voor Technologisch Onderzoek NV (VITO).
- The project has been allocated a total funding of EUR 2.5 million of which Rock Tech will be receiving up to EUR 1 million to drive innovation and optimization work of its lithium conversion processes.
Rock Tech Lithium Inc. is pleased to announce that it has been selected for funding under the prestigious KAVA (Knowledge and Innovation Activities) grant program by EIT RawMaterials, the most active network in the raw materials sector in Europe. This recognition supports Rock Tech’s ongoing commitment to advancing innovative lithium refining solutions in Europe and is the first funding awarded after Rock Tech’s Lithium Hydroxide Convertor Guben (LHCG) project has been recognized as a strategic project under Critical Raw Materials Project by the European Commission. Rock Tech will receive EUR 800,000 to improve and innovate its lithium conversion process to be applied to its Guben Converter in the future.
Under the KAVA Call-funding program, Rock Tech’s Lithium subsidiary company Rock Tech Guben GmbH will collaborate with leading research and industry partners, including NTUA (Greece), VITO (Belgium), and Admiris (Greece), to optimize lithium extraction processes and enhance lithium hydroxide monohydrate (LHM) production from spodumene. Rock Tech believes this optimization work will create substantial future operational and cost benefits for the Guben Converter.
“We are honored to be selected for the KAVA Call funding and to work jointly with partners to commercialize innovative, potentially game-changing lithium processing technologies”, comments Mirco Wojnarowicz, Rock Tech’s CEO.
The selected project, named OLiVer (Hard rock Lithium Extraction and Purified Value Products for Energy Applications) will demonstrate innovative processes at pilot scale, significantly improving lithium recovery efficiency and reducing environmental impact in line with EU green transition goals. The OLiVer project will focus on four main objectives:
- Optimizing pyro-hydro-metallurgical processing to enhance lithium extraction efficiency from spodumene.
- Developing a novel secondary lithium sulfate recovery process, enabling improved lithium recovery rates.
- Integrating primary and secondary lithium sulfate streams to boost overall LHM production yield.
- Conducting pilot-scale demonstrations to establish commercial viability for the enhanced lithium extraction process.
With this project, Rock Tech aims to drive forward the EU’s critical raw materials strategy and sustainability goals by producing high-purity LHM for electric vehicle batteries regionally.
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