Company working on lithium project forging ahead
Cypress Development Corp., a Canadian mining company focused on developing the Clayton Valley Lithium Project, provided an update on its ongoing pilot plant construction.
Equipment deliveries are on track and plant assembly is expected to commence by month’s end at the leased facility in Amargosa Valley, according to the press release.
The plant remains on schedule and is expected to be fully operational in July 2021.
Cypress Development Corp. has entered into a services agreement with Chemionex Inc., an Ontario-based company and innovator in hydrometallurgical process development and direct lithium extraction technology to advise on the DLE (direct lithium extraction) section of the pilot plant, the release said.
“We are pleased to have access to Chemionex and their considerable expertise in chemical processing in support of our pilot plant,” said Cypress CEO Bill Willoughby. “Along with the invaluable contributions from our other contractors, we look forward to advancing our concepts to develop a unique opportunity in lithium.”
The pilot plant is intended to confirm the extraction of lithium from the company’s Clayton Valley Lithium Project, in accordance with the recommendations outlined in the company’s prefeasibility study.
The initial operation of the pilot plant will focus on chloride-based leaching to confirm the previously announced results.
The plant at the Amargosa Valley site, owned and operated by Del Sol Refinery Inc., will be configured into three primary sections: leaching, tailings handling and DLE. Offsite testing of product and stripped leach solutions will be conducted at NORAM Engineering and Construction Ltd.’s BC Research laboratory in Richmond,Canada, according to the press release.
The overall plant operation will be supervised by Continental Metallurgical Services LLC in conjunction with Cypress and Del Sol Refining personnel.
Each section in the plant will have specific objectives. The leaching section will work to optimize leach conditions and confirm lithium extraction into pregnant leach solution, according to the documents.
The tailings handling section will utilize a counter-current decantation arrangement of thickener settlers and flocculant mixing determined by Pocock Industrial with the objective of determining materials handling, moisture content and water consumption.
Chemionex, under a separate purchase agreement, will provide the equipment for the DLE section of the pilot plant.
Additionally, Cypress will be granted an option upon completion of the pilot plant program to license Chemionex’s proprietary Lionex DLE technology for commercial use at its Clayton Valley Lithium Project. Both the purchase and option agreements are at advanced stage of preparation.
The work conducted by NORAM Engineering will treat the concentrated lithium solution from the DLE portion of the pilot plant to produce lithium hydroxide and test the stripped leach solution for compatibility in recycling to the leaching portion of the plant, according to the press release.
The company is proceeding with the due diligence work with respect to its recently announced letter agreement for water rights with Nevada Sunrise Gold Corp. The parties were working toward a purchase agreement to be completed on or before June 7.
The company also recently leased a 20-acre industrial site near Tonopah, Nevada. The location is at the site of a previous gold milling operation. Cypress is renovating the site, which it intends to use for administrative purposes in conjunction with the Clayton Valley Lithium Project.
Wildflowers damaged
Last year, conservationists found an estimated 40 percent of the plant's population destroyed. Fish and Wildlife officials announced in December that the damage was caused by animals.
