ESM will supply Ford with sustainable, American-sourced lithium for use in future EVs

SAN DIEGO, May 22, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- EnergySource Minerals (ESM) announces a binding lithium supply contract with Ford Motor Company. ESM is an emerging leader in the domestic production of sustainably produced lithium, a critical component used to manufacture cathodes in electric vehicle (EV) batteries.

ESM will supply Ford with lithium hydroxide produced at ESM's Project ATLiS™, located in Imperial Valley California. Project ATLiS is expected to be operational in 2025. Using only a fraction of the carbon, water and land footprint of any other operation in the world, Project ATLiS aims to set a new standard in sustainable lithium production. The project will maximize lithium output in a closed-loop environment and aims to deliver significant reduction in time, cost and environmental impact compared with alternative approaches.

The operation will feature ESM's breakthrough ILiAD™ technology platform, which separates lithium from an underlying geothermal brine resource, in an efficient and sustainable way.

"We are delighted to announce this contract with Ford Motor Company," said Eric Spomer, CEO of EnergySource Minerals. "The domestic supply chain for EVs in the United States is taking shape, literally from the ground up. Ford is embracing a domestic, sustainable standard for EV manufacturing, and we are proud to play a part in building America's clean energy supply chain."

Added Lisa Drake, Ford's vice president of EV Industrialization, Model e: "We are working with promising companies such as ESM to help support our ability to scale EV production and make EVs more accessible for customers over time. The work we are doing with ESM is key to growing our access to minerals such as lithium, which is essential to Ford's EV growth."

Project ATLiS in California's Salton Sea is expected to produce approximately 20,000 metric tons of lithium annually, which will quadruple the current U.S. supply of domestic lithium and is enough material to build around 500,000 EVs for the auto industry per year.

A key technology behind ESM's Project ATLiS is the patented ILiAD platform. ILiAD will efficiently process lithium from lithium-bearing brine resources, including the geothermal brine resource in the Salton Sea Geothermal Resource Area. The innovation will allow ATLiS to connect to an existing operational geothermal power facility and remove the lithium from the brine, after it's been used to generate geothermal power. The ILiAD technology will dramatically reduce the water footprint of alternative approaches, will not consume reagents, will demonstrate order-of-magnitude longer operating life and achieve higher lithium recovery rates than others to date.

Extensive additional pilot operations have demonstrated that ILiAD can be widely used on lithium brine resources across the world. ILiAD's application at Project ATLiS will highlight the scaled commercial viability of this state-of-the-art technology.

"With our flexible ILiAD platform we look forward to supplying lithium to manufacturers like Ford. Moreover, by deploying our ILiAD technology to brine resources across the world, we will enable an additional supply of sustainably produced lithium more broadly," added Spomer.

About EnergySource Minerals 
EnergySource Minerals is a privately held company leading the development of Project ATLiS, a premier lithium project located in Imperial County, California, United States – as well as the ILiAD platform technology, which is being developed and deployed into lithium operations around the world. 

EnergySource Minerals' team is comprised of leaders in industrial project development, continuous adsorption and ion exchange processes, and battery materials. A 30-year veteran of ion exchange and adsorption technology, Dr. Charles Marston has led the ILiAD technology project as Senior Development Officer. Dr. David Deak (ESM Chief Development Officer, President of Marbex LLC, former CTO of Lithium Americas Corp, ex-Tesla) and John Featherstone, CTO of EnergySource Minerals, provide leadership support for ILiAD and our own project development efforts.

About Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) is a global company based in Dearborn, Michigan, committed to helping build a better world, where every person is free to move and pursue their dreams.  The company's Ford+ plan for growth and value creation combines existing strengths, new capabilities and always-on relationships with customers to enrich experiences for customers and deepen their loyalty.  Ford develops and delivers innovative, must-have Ford trucks, sport utility vehicles, commercial vans and cars and Lincoln luxury vehicles, along with connected services.  The company does that through three customer-centered business segments:  Ford Blue, engineering iconic gas-powered and hybrid vehicles; Ford Model e, inventing breakthrough EVs along with embedded software that defines exceptional digital experiences for all customers; and Ford Pro, helping commercial customers transform and expand their businesses with vehicles and services tailored to their needs.  Additionally, Ford is pursuing mobility solutions through Ford Next, and provides financial services through Ford Motor Credit Company.  Ford employs about 174,000 people worldwide. More information about the company and its products and services is available at corporate.ford.com.

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