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Why lithium extraction offers a new opportunity for Big Oil
4/2/2026
8 min read
Feature
Extraction of rare earths like lithium are vital for the transition to a low-carbon future, with battery-grade lithium carbonate (Li2CO3) a key component of electric vehicle (EV) batteries and fixed storage like BESS. Major oil companies are embarking on direct lithium extraction (DLE), using their subsurface expertise to extract lithium from produced wastewater. This potential source of income is only recently considered to be able to work at scale, and still faces technical and regulatory challenges. Brian Davis reports.
DLE is a more advanced and faster alternative to using traditional evaporation ponds for lithium production. The process can utilise a range of technologies like ion exchange and adsorption, solvent extraction and membranes, including reverse osmosis and nano-filtration, to extract lithium from brine in hours and days rather than many months or years of evaporation.
Among its advantages, DLE reduces water usage and greenhouse gas emissions, while boosting recovery rates from 30–50% to 80–90%. However, there are high capital costs and technical hurdles to overcome in terms of scale-up. Operators admit that commercial production of ‘battery-grade’ lithium carbonate remains difficult, along with the management of impurities such as magnesium, calcium and boron.
Traditionally, lithium extraction involves pumping brine into massive ponds, relying on evaporation over 18 months or so, which consumes large amounts of water and land, with complex filtration and separation processes.