charging ahead: chevron evaluates lithium potential

Whether you are charging your phone, driving an electric car or working on your laptop, you’re probably relying on lithium. This soft, silvery—and rare—metal is shifting how we live, move and work. Its unique properties make it ideal for energy storage.

“As demand for digital conveniences and EVs continues to increase, lithium has become one of the world’s most sought-after natural resources,” said Rania Yacoub, corporate business development manager for Chevron New Energies.

Lithium-ion batteries are used in a wide variety of tech, from smartwatches to e-bikes to pacemakers. The International Energy Agency estimates that lithium demand could grow by more than 400% by 2040.

Because minerals like lithium are increasingly important to the energy ecosystem, the U.S. government has deemed the metal essential to the U.S. economy and national security.

“Chevron is looking to help meet that demand and drive U.S. energy competitiveness by sourcing lithium domestically,” said Yacoub.

Lithium is found around the world. As of 2024, the three top-producing countries were Chile, Australia and China. In the U.S., production is growing.

Lithium doesn’t occur as a readily usable metal in nature. Instead, it exists in volcanic rocks and in brines—salty water reservoirs such as mineral springs. The form it’s found in dictates how it’s extracted. Rocks containing lithium are crushed. Meanwhile, lithium found in brines has historically been extracted using surface evaporation. In both cases, lithium is then converted into a usable form.

As the world’s need for energy increases, lithium has an important role to play. Chevron plans to evaluate innovative ways to tap into lithium resources such as direct lithium extraction (DLE). DLE is a newer technique that’s gaining traction. This process extracts lithium from the brine and injects the remaining water back into the reservoir—progress from the historical method of surface evaporation.

DLE selectively removes lithium from brine while reinjecting the remaining water back into the reservoir.

“Extracting lithium from brine aligns with Chevron’s core capabilities,” said Chris Powers, vice president of CCUS & Emerging for Chevron New Energies. “Leveraging the same skill sets and workflows from the hydrocarbon business—subsurface appraisal, asset development planning, wells and operations—we are positioned to characterize this resource and plan for future growth.”

Chevron recently acquired leasehold acreage in the vast underground limestone Smackover Formation—specifically in Northeast Texas and Southwest Arkansas. Data suggests that this region contains lithium-bearing brines. The company intends to evaluate the lithium resource potential.

“This acquisition represents a strategic investment to support energy manufacturing and expand U.S.-based critical mineral supplies,” said Jeff Gustavson, president of Chevron New Energies. “Establishing domestic and resilient lithium supply chains is essential not only to maintain U.S. energy leadership but also to meet the growing demand from customers.”