Century Lithium

Century Lithium

Century Lithium, based in Vancouver, is an advanced-stage lithium exploration and development company focused on the Clayton Valley Lithium Project in Esmeralda County, Nevada, USA. The firm, led by President and CEO Bill Willoughby, has advanced the project through a definitive feasibility study completed in 2024, outlining a 40-year mine life with production of approximately 27,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent per year. The asset sits adjacent to Albemarle's Silver Peak operations, the only producing lithium brine operation in North America. The project strategy centers on integrating lithium extraction from lithium-rich claystone with an on-site lithium carbonate processing facility — a configuration designed to eliminate the need to ship concentrate to Asia for conversion. The feasibility study demonstrates a post-tax net present value of roughly $3 billion and an internal rate of return exceeding 40%, using a long-term lithium carbonate price assumption around $24,000 per tonne. The firm has operated a pilot plant for several years, validating the chloride-based pyro-hydrometallurgical extraction process and producing battery-grade samples tested by potential offtake partners. Team size and financial backing are not publicly disclosed in granular detail; however, the company trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol LCE, giving public equity investors exposure to the project's development. In June 2025, the company announced a strategic cooperation agreement with a major Japanese trading house to collaborate on project financing, offtake, and technical optimization — a signal of growing Asian strategic interest in US-based lithium supply. Earlier, in September 2023, the firm rebranded from Cypress Development Corp. to Century Lithium Corp., reflecting the asset's advancing maturity (per the firm, September 2023). Century Lithium's structural differentiator rests in its direct lithium extraction (DLE) and processing approach applied to claystone, an unconventional but increasingly relevant lithium-bearing host. Unlike brine peers that rely on evaporation ponds with 18-to-24-month cycles, the firm's chemical extraction route aims for faster, year-round processing with materially higher recoveries. The project's location in Nevada — a mining-friendly jurisdiction with existing infrastructure — combined with the integrated refinery model, positions it as a potential domestic alternative to foreign-controlled conversion capacity.