American Battery Technology Company to open facility to produce battery-grade lithium hydroxide
American Battery Technology Company (ABTC) has completed construction on its lithium hydroxide (LiOH) pilot plant and is now beginning commissioning. The integrated critical battery materials company is currently commercializing its technologies for both primary battery minerals manufacturing and secondary minerals lithium-ion battery recycling. According to the company, this facility will allow ABTC to “demonstrate its technologies for accessing the lithium housed in its unconventional resource, Tonopah Lithium Flats Project, in an integrated and continuous system.”
In addition, the company will be able to generate large amounts of battery-grade lithium hydroxide for its customers. Potential customers are currently touring the pilot plant, testing and validating the lithium hydroxide from the hundreds of tonnes of claystone material processed at this plant. A $4.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) helped support the project.
What people are saying
In a recent quote, ABTC CEO Ryan Melsert said, "We're excited to have completed construction of this first-of-kind pilot demonstration system. We have already generated thousands of liters of lithium solution from our claystone feedstock material demonstrating our selective lithium liberation technologies."
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About the Author
Alexis GajewskiAlexis Gajewski
Senior Content Strategist
Alexis Gajewski is a manufacturing writer and editor with nearly 20 years of experience covering the people, practices, and technologies that keep industrial facilities running. For more than a decade, she served as Senior Content Strategist for Plant Services, creating content for plant managers, engineers, and maintenance professionals on a variety of industrial topics.
During her tenure, Alexis worked to develop the brand’s digital strategy and helped launch and produce Great Question: A Manufacturing Podcast. She also created The Lighter Side of Manufacturing, a weekly blog that explored the inventive and sometimes humorous side of the industry.
Alexis co-founded Influential Women in Manufacturing, a recognition program that honored 49 women in its first two years, earned an industry award for Best Product Launch, and received a proclamation from Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and a commendation from U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth.
She also led newsroom operations and development at a large media company where she set editorial standards, developed training curriculum, and helped support AI adoption for more than 150 editors across 80+ brands spanning manufacturing, industrial processing, automation, and more.
Additionally, Alexis works as a freelance writer and editor, and her areas of interest include continuous improvement, the skilled workforce, and the role of emerging technology on the plant floor.
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