ABTC engages Black & Veatch to support design, construction and commission of lithium hydroxide facility

Reno, Nevada-based American Battery Technology Company (ABTC), which is commercializing its primary minerals manufacturing and secondary minerals lithium-ion battery recycling technologies, says it has engaged global critical infrastructure solutions leader Black & Veatch, Overland Park, Kansas, in a technical services agreement to support the design, construction and commissioning of ABTC’s first commercial-scale lithium hydroxide manufacturing facility in Tonopah, Nevada.

The design and construction of the facility is supported by a competitively selected U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) grant and will commercialize ABTC’s process for the manufacturing of battery-grade lithium hydroxide from unconventional Nevada-based lithium-bearing sedimentary resources. The company says it will have the capacity to initially produce 30,000 metric tons of lithium hydroxide per year.

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“The successful engineering, procurement and construction of this first-of-kind facility is critically important to the energy security of the United States, and to support the rapidly growing domestic lithium-ion battery industry,” ABTC CEO Ryan Melsert says. “The selection of Black & Veatch to provide these services is an extremely important decision, and as such we implemented a global competitive search process and received bids from over a dozen of the largest premier construction firms in the world.”

Melsert continues, “With Black & Veatch’s immense experience in the global high-purity chemicals manufacturing space, track record for successful on-budget and on-time projects, and significant experience working with government-funded projects, we are extremely fortunate to be able to form this relationship and long-term engagement with such a global leader.”

Black & Veatch has expertise in delivering sustainability solutions to clients in the critical minerals chemical refining space. The company says its chemical refining client segment assists companies in driving down costs, integrating greener approaches and bolstering efficiencies.

The firm says it also has experience with first-of-a-kind (FOAKE) projects and has worked extensively with startups to bring their visions to reality and transition from concepts to commercialization.

“Black & Veatch champions efforts to decarbonize the transportation space, and this project reinforces our commitment to environmental sustainability and the promising societal role of electric vehicles (EVs) and broader battery storage applications in pursuit of a greener, more resilient planet,” says Laszlo von Lazar, president of Black & Veatch’s energy and process industries business.

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ABTC says the signing of this technical services agreement marks a milestone in the commercialization of its Tonopah Flats Lithium Project, and will help provide a domestic supply of critical battery materials needed for the U.S. energy transition. The company adds that based on a recent third-party audited analysis and published inferred resource report, the Tonopah Flats project was identified as one of the largest known lithium deposits in the U.S., with an inferred resource of 15.8 million tons of lithium carbonate equivalent.