Captura, ElectraLith to collaborate on new method for extracting and refining lithium
Captura, a US-based electrochemical platform provider, and ElectraLith, a pioneer in direct lithium extraction and refining, have announced a strategic partnership to commercialise ElectraLith’s DLE-R technology.
The companies believe the partnership will accelerate deployment of lower-impact, lower-cost technologies to support the energy transition.
ElectraLith’s DLE-R technology is emerging as one of the cleanest, most versatile and most cost-efficient methods to extract and refine lithium, according to the company. DLE-R’s proprietary electrochemical process is designed to produce 99.5%-plus pure battery-grade lithium hydroxide or carbonate from a range of resources in a single, scalable and modular step that, it says, eliminates the need for further refining, often performed overseas. It is billed as extracting and producing battery-grade lithium hydroxide in a single, scalable and modular step that requires no water or chemicals, running entirely on renewable energy.
ElectraLith anticipates multiple commercial deployments across major lithium bearing regions including Chile, Argentina, Australia and the United States by 2028.
Captura’s proprietary bipolar membrane electrodialysis (BMED) platform enables efficient electrochemical separation and conversion processes with significantly lower energy consumption and capital cost than conventional BMED systems. The technology can support multiple steps in lithium extraction and refining, and can integrate with a broad range of solutions, helping producers improve process efficiency, economics and sustainability performance, the company claims.
Under the partnership and subject to certain terms and conditions, ElectraLith will procure BMED stacks from Captura over an initial period of five years. This includes BMED stacks procured in June 2026 for two commercial-scale DLE-R pilot plants, both of which are expected to be commissioned in early 2027. ElectraLith anticipates orders for additional BMED stacks immediately following successful pilot operations for DLE-R’s global deployment.
“ElectraLith’s partnership with Captura combines two industry pioneers taking on climate change, one of the greatest challenges of our generation,” Charlie McGill, CEO of ElectraLith, said. “Captura’s BMED technology fully unlocks DLE-R’s potential to deliver the cleanest, most versatile and most cost-efficient method of extracting and refining lithium, the fundamental element of a sustainable future. It also unlocks DLE-R’s potential to support a fully domestic US lithium supply chain.”
Christene Banda, Chief Operating Officer of Captura, added: “This partnership represents an important commercial milestone for Captura as ElectraLith becomes our first major customer for our electrodialysis platform. It validates the strength of our proprietary membrane technology and demonstrates the value of combining our teams’ complementary expertise and technologies to develop a differentiated solution for the lithium market.”
ElectraLith is backed by a consortium including Rio Tinto, Chevron Technology Ventures, Marathon Petroleum Corporation and In-Q-Tel, while Captura recently announced the first close of its Series B financing with continued support from existing investors including Equinor Ventures, Aramco Ventures, Hitachi Ventures, Maersk Growth and National Grid Partners.
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