Dutch chemicals company Nobian has launched a new European lithium refining initiative aimed at developing a more sustainable domestic supply chain for battery materials. The LiSA consortium will invest approximately €3.6 million in a three-year pilot programme designed to produce battery-grade lithium chemicals from recycled and alternative European feedstocks.
The project brings together Nobian, Back to Battery, the University of Twente, Demcon Suster and the Institute for Sustainable Process Technology (ISPT), combining expertise in chemical processing, battery recycling and industrial-scale technology development. Supported by public funding from the Dutch government, the initiative targets one of Europe’s key battery supply-chain challenges: the limited availability of local lithium refining capacity.
Dutch Government Supports Circular Lithium Technology
The LiSA pilot programme will receive €2 million in funding from the Dutch government through the TKI Energy programme, representing approximately 56% of the total announced investment. The three-year initiative will focus on testing an advanced refining process capable of converting lithium-containing feedstocks into high-value battery materials.
The project is designed to strengthen Europe’s ability to process lithium domestically rather than relying heavily on overseas refining capacity. While Europe has invested significantly in battery manufacturing and raw material exploration, the intermediate chemical conversion stage remains a major supply-chain gap.
Pilot to Produce Battery-Grade Lithium Hydroxide and Carbonate
The LiSA project will evaluate the production of:
- battery-grade lithium hydroxide, and
- lithium carbonate.
The process will use European lithium sources, including:
- geothermal brines,
- lithium recovered from end-of-life batteries,
- other regional lithium-containing materials.
Nobian’s patented technology combines electrochemical processing with salt-based crystallisation to transform lithium chloride into finished lithium chemicals suitable for battery applications. The technology is designed to provide a flexible refining route capable of handling different lithium feedstocks, supporting a more diversified European battery materials ecosystem.
Circular Process Could Reduce Energy Use and Emissions
A key feature of the LiSA technology is the planned integration with Nobian’s existing chemical infrastructure. During lithium conversion, sodium chloride is produced as a by-product. The consortium intends to return this material to Nobian’s existing chlor-alkali electrolysers, where it can be used to regenerate caustic soda required in the lithium refining process.
The partners estimate that this integrated approach could reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions by approximately 50% compared with conventional lithium refining methods. By creating a closed-loop chemical process, the project aims to improve resource efficiency while lowering the environmental impact of battery material production.
Consortium Partners Bring Complementary Expertise
Each LiSA partner will contribute specific technical capabilities to the pilot programme. Demcon Suster will be responsible for designing and constructing the pilot facility, providing engineering expertise for the demonstration plant.
The University of Twente will support process modelling, simulation and optimisation activities, helping refine operating conditions and improve future scale-up potential.
Back to Battery will provide lithium-containing recycled material streams, allowing the project to test its technology on secondary raw materials recovered from used batteries. The collaboration combines chemical industry experience with recycling and academic research capabilities to accelerate development of a circular lithium supply chain.
Pilot Addresses Critical Gap in Europe’s Battery Industry
Although the €3.6 million investment is relatively small compared with the cost of a commercial lithium conversion facility, the project targets one of the weakest areas of Europe’s battery value chain.
European industrial policy has focused heavily on:
- securing raw material supplies,
- developing mining projects,
- expanding battery cell manufacturing.
Domestic capacity for converting diverse lithium sources into specification-grade battery chemicals remains limited. A successful refining technology could help bridge this gap by enabling Europe to process lithium from multiple sources, including recycling streams and geothermal resources that may not justify traditional large-scale refinery investments.
Commercial Success Depends on Pilot Results
The immediate objective of LiSA is not commercial-scale production, but the generation of technical and economic data required for future expansion.
Key performance indicators will include:
- lithium recovery rates,
- product purity,
- material balances,
- reagent consumption,
- energy requirements,
- operating costs,
- scalability.
These results will determine whether the technology can attract larger industrial investment, government support or project financing for commercial deployment.
Existing Chemical Infrastructure Could Lower Future Costs
One of the main advantages of Nobian’s approach is the ability to integrate lithium refining with existing industrial assets. Using established chlor-alkali infrastructure, utilities and chemical recycling loops could reduce the capital requirements of future commercial plants compared with building entirely standalone facilities.
The technology could also enable processing of smaller lithium resources, including certain geothermal brines and recycled battery materials that may not be suitable for conventional large-scale refining operations.
Supporting Europe’s Circular Battery Materials Strategy
The LiSA pilot reflects Europe’s broader effort to develop a more resilient and sustainable battery supply chain. As demand for lithium continues to rise due to electric vehicles, energy storage and clean technology deployment, the ability to refine and recycle lithium domestically is becoming increasingly important. If successfully validated, Nobian’s process could provide Europe with an additional pathway for producing battery-grade lithium chemicals while reducing dependence on imported refining capacity. The next stage of the project will therefore focus on proving whether the technology can move from pilot-scale demonstration to a commercially competitive solution for Europe’s growing lithium industry.
