Standard Lithium Makes First Pilot-Scale Battery Quality Lithium Carbonate, Engages Investor Relations Firm, LHA

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Jan. 09, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Standard Lithium Ltd. (“Standard Lithium” or the “Company”) (TSXV: SLL) (OTC-Nasdaq Intl. Designation: STLHF) (FRA: S5L), announced that the Company has produced its first quantity of battery quality (>99.56% purity) lithium carbonate.

Dr. Andy Robinson, President and COO of Standard Lithium, commented, “We continue to be very pleased with the performance of our prototype pilot.  Whilst we had previously made ‘battery quality’ carbonate at bench scale using our proprietary technology, we consider it an important milestone that we can achieve the same very high levels of purity at the larger scale of our prototype pilot.  This has provided Standard Lithium, our Technical Team and our design partners with all the confidence needed to commence detailed design on the main crystallisation pilot plant, and this work is now ongoing.”

The battery quality lithium carbonate was produced at the Company’s prototype Lithium Carbonate Crystallisation Pilot Plant operated by Saltworks Technologies Inc., at their facility in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada.  The Crystallisation Pilot Plant is based on Standard Lithium’s proprietary technology, and information regarding its commissioning and first results were reported in news dated December 12, 2018.  As previously reported, the synthetic feed solution to the crystallisation process was relatively ‘impure’; similar to, but less pure than that produced by the Company’s Lithium Extraction Process (as per ongoing testing at the Company’s mini-pilot plant in Ontario).

Lithium Carbonate Crystallisation Pilot Plant
The prototype crystallisation plant was operated as a two-stage crystallisation process.  The initial solids produced from the first run (as previously reported December 12, 2018), were re-solubilised and crystallised a second time.  The solids produced from this second run (second stage as reported here) were then hot-washed, filtered and dried.  The resulting lithium carbonate crystals were a fine free-flowing powder and were >99.56% pure.  Despite the fact that the synthetic starting solution had more impurities than are anticipated to be present in the solution the upstream process will produce, lithium carbonate purity targets were met, giving a measure of comfort that the crystallisation process is robust.  Additional optimisation is now being performed, and the technical team will also be adjusting the composition of the input feed stream so as to optimise how the two parts of Standard Lithium’s proprietary technologies work together.

Quality Assurance
Dr. Ron Molnar, Professional Metallurgical Engineer (Ontario P.E.# 100111288), is a qualified person as defined by NI 43-101, and has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical information that forms the basis for this news release.  Dr. Molnar is independent of the Company.

Investor Relations
Standard Lithium Ltd. also announced it has retained the services of Lippert/Heilshorn & Associates, Inc. (“LHA”) to provide investor relations services to the Company.  Services will include providing guidance on best practices for shareholder communication, drafting and reviewing of corporate disclosure and coordinating conferences and presentations with shareholders and the investment community.  LHA will be compensated at a rate of US$15,000 per month for an initial twelve-month term.  The agreement is subject to the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange.

Founded in 1984 with headquarters in New York and offices in Los Angeles and San Francisco, LHA is comprised of seasoned professionals working in teams who are committed to serving small-cap companies across multiple industry sectors. Market capitalizations of LHA’s clients range from under $100 million to over $10 billion.

About Standard Lithium Ltd.
Standard Lithium (TSX: SLL) is specialty chemical company focused on unlocking the value of existing large-scale US based lithium bearing brine resources. The company believes new lithium production can be brought on stream rapidly by minimizing project risks at selection stage; resource, political & geographic, regulatory & permitting, and by leveraging advances in lithium extraction technologies and processes. The Company’s flagship project is located in southern Arkansas, where it is engaged in the testing and proving of the commercial viability of lithium extraction from over 150,000 acres of permitted brine operations utilising the Company’s proprietary selective extraction technology.  The Company is also pursuing the resource development of over 30,000 acres of separate brine leases located in southwestern Arkansas and approximately 45,000 acres of mineral leases located in the Mojave Desert in San Bernardino County, California.

Standard Lithium is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the trading symbol “SLL”; quoted on the OTC – Nasdaq International Designation: STLHF; and on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the symbol “S5L”. Please visit the Company’s website at www.standardlithium.com.

Forward Looking Statements Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.  This news release may contain certain “Forward-Looking Statements” within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and applicable Canadian securities laws. When used in this news release, the words “anticipate”, “believe”, “estimate”, “expect”, “target, “plan”, “forecast”, “may”, “schedule” and other similar words or expressions identify forward-looking statements or information.  These forward-looking statements or information may relate to future prices of commodities, accuracy of mineral or resource exploration activity, reserves or resources, regulatory or government requirements or approvals, the reliability of third party information, continued access to mineral properties or infrastructure, fluctuations in the market for lithium and its derivatives, changes in exploration costs and government regulation in Canada and the United States, and other factors or information.  Such statements represent the Company’s current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a number of assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by the Company, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social risks, contingencies and uncertainties.  Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause results, performance or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.  The Company does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update these forward-looking statements or information to reflect changes in assumptions or changes in circumstances or any other events affections such statements and information other than as required by applicable laws, rules and regulations.

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