Wellspring Hydro
Extracting lithium and chemicals from oilfield wastewater.
| Date | Investors | Amount | Round |
|---|---|---|---|
* | $7.5m | Grant | |
| Total Funding | 000k | ||
Wellspring Hydro is a North Dakota-based company founded in 2016 by local entrepreneurs Steve and Carla Kemp. Initially focused on transforming the Bakken oil field's largest waste stream—produced water—into valuable resources, the company's early vision was to recover lithium from this brine. The business plan evolved to also include extracting salts from the brine to create essential industrial chemicals like caustic soda, hydrochloric acid, and calcium chloride.
The company operates by taking produced water, a byproduct of oil extraction that is typically discarded into disposal wells, and processing it to harvest commercially valuable materials. This model aims to create a sustainable and domestic supply chain for critical resources while mitigating the environmental impact of oil and gas operations. The company's clients are primarily within the energy sector, which uses the chemicals produced, and the growing market for lithium, driven by demand for batteries in electric vehicles and electronics.
Wellspring Hydro has formed strategic partnerships to advance its technology and scale operations. A key collaboration is with the Canadian company Volt Lithium (now known as LibertyStream Infrastructure Partners Inc.) to test and deploy proprietary direct lithium extraction (DLE) technology. This technology has shown high efficiency in field tests, with extraction rates up to 96%. The company has received significant financial support through grants and loans from the North Dakota Industrial Commission’s Clean Sustainable Energy Authority Program and Renewable Energy Program to fund its research, development, and the construction of commercial facilities. The management team includes CEO Mark Watson and COO Mat Hirst, who bring extensive experience in project management, finance, and oil and gas operations.
Keywords: direct lithium extraction, produced water treatment, oilfield brine valorization, critical minerals, sustainable resource management, chlor-alkali production, hydrochloric acid, caustic soda, Bakken formation, North Dakota, water recycling, DLE technology, battery materials, circular economy, waste stream valorization, industrial chemicals, energy sector services, lithium mining, clean energy, sustainable mining
