Nemaska Obtains Australian Patent for Lithium Processes

 
Nemaska Lithium Inc. (TSX:NMX,OTCQX:NMKEF) has obtained acceptance of its patent application No. 2013270412 in Australia relating to its proprietary process of preparing lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate using membrane electrolysis. Nemaska Lithium elected to have the examination of its Australian application accelerated under the Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) system, on the basis of its existing US Patent no 9,382,126 issued on July 5, 2016. The Australian patent application was expedited because patents were already granted in Canada and the US covering the same intellectual property, thereby saving the Corporation time and money.
Jean-Francois Magnan, Technical Manager at Nemaska Lithium stated, “This Australian development is significant since this is our first patent granted in Australia. In our view, the Australian market is important as it is a major source of hard rock lithium concentrate production. This patent protects our low-cost electrolysis-based technique for producing lithium salts in that region. We remain vigilant in reviewing new technical approaches to producing lithium hydroxide and carbonate with a view to protecting our IP globally. We believe this patent will considerably strengthen our position in the fast-growing Australian market.”
Management believes that Nemaska Lithium’s patented processes will give the Corporation significant cost and product purity advantages over its peers globally (see Feasibility Study dated June 08, 2016).
About Nemaska Lithium
Nemaska Lithium intends to become a lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate supplier to the emerging lithium battery market that is largely driven by electric vehicles, cell phones, tablets and other consumer products. The Corporation is developing in Quebec one of the most important spodumene lithium hard rock deposit in the world, both in volume and grade. The spodumene concentrate produced at Nemaska Lithium’s Whabouchi mine will be shipped to the Corporation’s lithium compounds processing plant to be built in Shawinigan, Quebec. This plant will transform spodumene concentrate into high purity lithium hydroxide and carbonate using the proprietary methods developed by the Corporation, and for which the Corporation holds four granted patents and several patent applications that are pending in different countries, covering different aspects and improvements of its proprietary technology for preparing high purity lithium hydroxide and carbonate.
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