EnergySource to receive $2.5m grant to study lithium extraction from geothermal brine
Hudson Ranch I geothermal power plant, March 2012, Salton Sea, California/ U.S. (source: EnergySource)
Alexander Richter
6 Apr 2017
Geothermal operator EnergySource, through EnergySource Minerals is the proposed recipient of a $2.5 million grant for a lithium extraction project at its geothermal plant in the Salton Sea area in California.
In January this year, the California Energy Commission (Energy Commission) released a Grant Funding Opportunity (GFO-16-509) titled “Geothermal Grant and Loan Program (GRDA) – Mineral Recovery from Geothermal Brines.”
This competitive grant solicitation was offered pursuant to Senate Bill (SB) 1074 (Hueso, Chapter 539, Statutes of 2016), which became effective on January 1, 2017. The solicitation announced that up to $2,500,000 in grant funding was available, with applications due by March 10, 2017.
The applications received for GFO-16-509 have been screened, evaluated and scored using the criteria prescribed in the solicitation. Based on the Evaluation Committee’s scores, the Energy Commission proposes to award funding to one applicant.
In its “Notice of Proposed Awards and Results of Submitted Proposals” the commission identifies the applicant recommended to receive funding, the project title, the recommended amount of Energy Commission funding, and scoring information.
The purpose of this GFO was to solicit grant funding applications from eligible local jurisdictions and private entities for geothermal energy-related projects in California that meet all of the following requirements:
- The project is for recovery of lithium, metals, agricultural products, or other beneficial minerals from highly mineralized geothermal brines;
- The project is located at a geothermal facility in existence on January 1, 2017, that is in a disadvantaged community and provides local employment opportunities; and
- The project uses commercially available technologies for the mineral or product recovery processes.
There were three parties seeking to receive the grant, two are named in the document, Ormat Nevada and EnergySource Minerals, LLC.
The Commission has now chosen EnergySource Minerals as awardee for the full amount of $2.5 million for its “Well To Wheels Lithium Design Proposal”.
Source: California Energy Commission, Notice of Proposed Award (pdf)
