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STANDARD LITHIUM PROVIDES DEMONSTRATION PLANT OPERATIONAL UPDATE RELATED TO COVID-19 MANAGEMENT

STANDARD LITHIUM PROVIDES DEMONSTRATION PLANT OPERATIONAL UPDATE RELATED TO COVID-19 MANAGEMENT

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, March 30, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Standard Lithium Ltd. (“Standard Lithium” or the “Company”) (TSXV: SLL) (OTCQX: STLHF) (FRA: S5L) provides an update on the current status of the Company’s LiSTR Direct Lithium Extraction Demonstration Plant at Lanxess’ South Plant facility in southern Arkansas (the “Site”) in relation to the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak. The Company is actively monitoring the COVID-19 pandemic and working closely with Lanxess to implement preventative measures at the Company’s Site to safeguard the health of its employees and contractors, while continuing to operate effectively and responsibly in its communities and within the greater south Arkansas brine operations.  Some of the measures being put into place include:

  • Continuing operations at the Site with the minimum staff present on site as required;
  • Screening all contractors and external visitors to site for risk factors, as well as employees returning on shift change;
  • Requiring employees who show symptoms or are in close contact with someone with symptoms to stay home from work;
  • Suspension of all international travel and requiring employees returning from travel outside of the USA or Canada to self-isolate for the government recommended 14-day self-quarantine period;
  • Implementing work-from-home practices where possible, including ongoing process engineering and optimisation work at the Company’s LiSTR demonstration plant;
  • Reducing in-person meetings and transitioning to videoconferencing where possible, as well as restricting any large gatherings;
  • Enhanced cleaning and disinfecting protocols at the Site on hard surfaces and especially at touch-points; and,
  • Promoting personal preventative measures, such as frequent handwashing, and increasing awareness of social distancing practices.

These safety guidelines follow those outlined by the U.S. Federal Government, State Government of Arkansas, the Government of Canada and the Provincial Governments of British Columbia and Ontario. These guidelines also comply with the site-specific guidance developed for the operational South Plant.  These guidelines will be updated as and when required based both on government advice as well as that of our project partner, Lanxess.  The Company will provide updates to the market as appropriate.

Commissioning work at the Site continues with no significant negative impacts to date beyond the implementation of additional education and safety measures however it is too early to predict the potential full impact of the COVID-19 crisis. The Company will provide additional updates regarding successful completion of milestones in the near future.

About Standard Lithium Ltd.
Standard Lithium (TSXV: SLL) is a specialty chemical company focused on unlocking the value of existing large-scale US based lithium-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.  The Company is currently installing a first-of-its-kind Demonstration Plant that will use the Company’s proprietary technology to selectively extract lithium from LANXESS’ tailbrine.  This Demonstration Plant will be used to prove commercial feasibility.  The environmentally friendly process eliminates the use of evaporation ponds, reduces processing time from months to hours and greatly increases the effective recovery of lithium.

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 Intl Designation under the symbol “STLHF”; and on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the symbol “S5L”.  Please visit the Company’s website at www.standardlithium.com.

For further information, contact Anthony Alvaro at (604) 240 4793