Summit Nanotech: Leading with lithium
Amanda Hall is a scientist, citizen of the world, and someone who refuses to accept the status quo. After a long career in extractive resources in Western Canada, she wanted to switch things up, but wasn’t certain about what came next.
Amanda Hall, founder and CEO, Summit Nanotech
Then, on a mountaintop in Tibet, she saw a monk pull a cell phone out of his robes and she had a revelation – not just about her next career step but about the future of the energy sector. Lithium, the key material for batteries in electric vehicles, cell phones and energy storage.
Today, she’s the founder and CEO of a Calgary-based lithium extraction company, Summit Nanotech.
Like many local founders, she exemplifies the vision of the economic strategy, Calgary in the New Economy, and sees the city as the place where bright minds and big ideas come together with an unmatched spirit to help solve global challenges.
FROM GEOPHYSICS TO NANOTECHNOLOGY
Summit Nanotech’s lithium extraction technology increases the lithium recovery factor from a given brine resource from about 40 per cent today to 80 per cent.
Traditionally, extracting lithium is done through two methods: hard rock mining, or the brine method.
In hard rock mining, rocks containing lithium are mined, crushed, sorted and cleaned, with rocks containing lithium separated from the rest. These rocks are later roasted, cooled and leached in acid. Water is then poured over top, dissolving the lithium into a concentrate, which can be further processed into various forms.
Alternatively, brines are massive pools filled with highly concentrated salt and other mineral water that have collected underground. This water is extracted and put in sequential pools in hot, dry climates where water evaporates, precipitating out various minerals to leave a concentrate of lithium and select other impurities, which can be later extracted and processed.
Neither of these methods are particularly efficient. To address a solution to this is a global challenge, Hall wanted to pursue efficiencies in the brine method. With hard rock mining materially more disruptive to the environment than brine, she began to seek a new, sustainable (economically and environmentally) and time-efficient method to extract the element.
“We want to do what’s best for the planet and want to make sure everything we do is sustainable,” said Hall.
Summit Nanotech’s technology is designed as a proprietary nanomaterial that effectively extracts lithium out of the brine. The technique not only doubles the yield of lithium but reduces processing time from 18 months to 5 hours. Time aside, Summit Nanotech’s process uses less water, less chemicals and produces less waste and emissions.
CANADIAN TECHNOLOGY WITH A GLOBAL REACH
Most of Summit Nanotech’s customer base is outside Canada, with clients in Chile, Argentina, the United States and Europe. The firm not only increases efficiencies of lithium extraction but provides a framework for clients to redefine ESG goals and benchmarks.
“Albertans know how to develop projects sustainably, responsibly and with respect to Indigenous communities – which is less common in certain countries – so we’re also exporting Alberta’s best practices in resource extraction,” said Hall.
OPPORTUNITIES OUT WEST
Hall’s experience is deeply rooted in science, beginning with her biology degree from the University of Toronto. She later moved to Calgary for a geophysics degree at the University of Calgary and started working as an environmental scientist in various extractive resource roles in potash mining, horizontal drilling and the oil sands. Her extensive experience in the energy industry prepared her for her work in lithium extraction.
“Science is science. Everything I learned from physics, biology and geophysics fed into how lithium could be extracted from underground,” she said.
When Hall initially made her move to Calgary, she saw the city as the place of opportunity for a scientist, with a heavy emphasis placed on science and data in many extractive resource processes. The passion of Albertans also resonated with Hall’s ethos of honesty and hard work.
Calgary afforded her experience that ignited her entrepreneurial spirit.
A SUPPORTIVE TECH ECOSYSTEM
Hall attributes much of Summit Nanotech’s success to the support from the tech community ecosystem.
“I think of all the people who have supported me over the last four years and smile. Different institutions and individuals provide advice and guidance at different stages of growth,” said Hall.
Creative Destruction Labs – Rockies (CDL-Rockies) was a significant player in helping Amanda launch her company. In the 9 months that she was in their accelerator program, she worked with mentors to define her business plans, prioritize time and resources, and connect with investors and other experts in her field. Upon graduation from her cohort, Amanda acquired 15 investors with whom she continues to work with today.
Among the investors is The51, a FinancialFeminist™ platform that aims to democratize access to capital for women and gender-diverse founders. The group not only provides financial backing to the Summit Nanotech venture, but provides a source of community for women-identifying entrepreneurs to mentor each other and build their network.
Both CDL-Rockies and The51 are beneficiaries of the Opportunity Calgary Investment Fund (OCIF), which is designed to support Calgary’s innovation and tech ecosystem. With support from the two organizations, Summit Nanotech accessed mentorship and capital in Calgary’s innovation and tech ecosystem, enabling the company to scale to new heights.
Summit Nanotech has also benefited from government support through Alberta Innovates, Natural Resources Canada, SDTC, NGEN, and National Research Council Canada.
“When you start getting that type of recognition and government support, you really start to believe in what you’re doing, and I wouldn’t be where I am without them,” said Hall.
HIRING WITH HEART
It takes H.E.A.R.T.S. to be a Summit employee.
Humility, empathy, adaptability, relentlessness, transparency and safety are necessary for a company that is always changing, growing and evolving. According to Hall, there is no room for egos, complacency or dishonesty. Diversity is also top of mind for Hall, and it’s not something that just happens; it is pursued.
“It’s not equal opportunity, it’s equal outcome,” said Hall.
Summit strives for equal numbers of men and women in the company, as well as many cultures and backgrounds, because each contributes a different perspective to the work and makes every outcome better.
Working with post-secondary institutions in Calgary, like the University of Calgary’s Mitacs and NSERC programs, are key to attracting the right talent for the firm, which is currently hiring many positions for their Calgary office.
WHAT’S NEXT
“Calgary is the right place to grow Summit Nanotech. We can readily find the knowledge, experience and mindset needed to grow a global company at home in Calgary.”
Summit Nanotech has three big goals for the next three to five years.
● First, Hall wants the company to be one of the city’s next unicorns with a value of over one billion dollars.
● Second, she wants to grow her team from 50 to 250.
● Finally, she wants Summit to be the number-one lithium extraction company in the world.
To get there, Summit must scale their technology and continue to push the boundaries of science. They also need the right people, says Hall.
“Calgary is the right place to grow Summit Nanotech. We can readily find the knowledge, experience and mindset needed to grow a global company at home in Calgary.”
Are you ready to make moves in Calgary’s tech scene, working with forward-thinking companies like Summit Nanotech? Head to our Live Tech Love Life careers page and see what opportunities might be out there for you.