My name is Peter Ehren, I'm an independent Lithium Consultant with more than 26 year of experience in the industry. I started my interest in the Lithium business during my master's thesis at the Technical University of Delft where I investigated the recovery of Lithium from geothermal brine for BHP Minerals (Salton Sea). Applying Direct Lithium Extraction (DLE) technology. After my thesis I worked for SQM as a process engineer, and R&D manager until 2007. Since 2007 I worked as an independent consultant in the Lithium-, boron- and potassium industry and formed a company together with Macarena Gonzalez Prieto, called Process and Environmental Consultancy. Macarena is ESG director of Lithium Ark. 

 

I worked in the majority of Lithium basins and production facilities worldwide and being fortune to be one of the few consultants in the industry who has built projects from lab scale all the way through to industrial production.

 

 

 

 

 

During this period I brought 4 projects to DFS level and 1 in operation. (Orocobre -AllKem , Ioneer, Millennium Lithium, Lithium Power International). I have visited and evaluated many Lithium brine and minerals operations in the whole world, where under Salar de Atacama, Salar Olaroz, Cauchari, Silver Peak, Greenbushes, Qinghai Basis and many others.

One of the issues in the industry is the significant consumption of reagents, energy and transport, all resulting in higher costs and emissions. Focused on the effort to reduce costs and inherent emissions, we developed  a circular energy efficient process. Part of the motivation,  that our oldest children started to study Circular Engineering, with a mindset on the circular economy. Our objective is to Greenify the lithium supply chain, with innovative process solutions and technology. 

On the other hand we have the responsibility to be good administrators of our resources, and we have to use our brain power to look for better solutions than actually implemented in the industry.

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