Inside The Venture Center’s Second Arkansas Lithium Technology Accelerator
In This Edition:
We’re taking you inside the launch of the second Arkansas Lithium Technology Accelerator — featuring three cutting-edge companies spanning extraction, water processing and battery materials — plus an on-the-ground look at how Magnolia is preparing for the coming wave of investment and workforce growth.
ALTA unveils its second cohort and kicks off a multi-region tour across South Arkansas, Little Rock and Northwest Arkansas. Meet the companies below.
Magnolia leaders share how the city is strengthening infrastructure, housing and community readiness for the lithium economy.
Let’s dive in!
Inside the 2nd Arkansas Lithium Technology Accelerator
Two companies with Arkansas ties and another developing an alternative lithium extraction method make up the second Arkansas Lithium Technology Accelerator (ALTA) cohort, unveiled Monday at South Arkansas College in El Dorado.
ALTA, created by The Venture Center with Standard Lithium and the University of Arkansas, is designed to plug high-potential companies directly into Arkansas’ fast-growing lithium ecosystem — from upstream brine production to downstream advanced battery applications.
ALTA, which launched its first cohort in July, is the nation’s only lithium- and battery-supply-chain accelerator.
The Dec. 1 kickoff event was led by Venture Center Executive Director Athur Orduña and Program Manager Sarah Thomas, with a welcome video from U.S. Rep. Bruce Westerman, who emphasized Arkansas’ role in building a secure domestic lithium industry.
(Members of the second ALTA cohort. Photo by Ebony Blevins for The Venture Center)
Others who spoke at the event included:
Clint O’Neal, executive director of the Arkansas Economic Development Commission
Steven Jones, CEO of the Union County Chamber of Commerce
Chad Martin, vice president of U.S. operations for Standard Lithium
Erik Pollock, director of the UA’s Stable Isotope and Trace Element lab
James Hendren, chairman, The Venture Center
The big picture: ALTA helps cohort companies secure pilot and commercial opportunities, investor connections, media visibility and access to Arkansas’ incentives, academic expertise and workforce pipeline.
Meet the 2025 Cohort
Lithios of Boston
An MIT startup, Lithios is developing a next-generation electrochemical direct lithium extraction (DLE) platform capable of separating lithium from complex U.S. brines at up to 40% lower cost than traditional chemical DLE methods.
Director of Strategy Oscar Turner described the technology as “a higher-performance version of an extraction technology” that can economically process a broad range of lithium resources.
The company’s first devices were “the size of a cell phone”; today, its systems are 10,000 times larger, including a new field deployment operating in South Arkansas.
Lithios plans to pursue multiple large demonstration projects and is evaluating Arkansas as a potential home for its first commercial manufacturing facility — not just for lithium production, but also for manufacturing the equipment used in that process.
Menen Group of Springdale
A profitable, established Arkansas water-treatment company serving clients like Tyson Foods Inc. of Springdale and Simmons Foods of Siloam Springs, Menen Group views the Smackover opportunity through a water-management lens. “Arkansas’ lithium boom is a water treatment problem,” CEO Chris Milligan said.
Milligan said Menen’s patented Multi-Phase Vacuum Desalination (MPVD) technology uses 60% less energy than conventional methods — an “elegant application of thermodynamics” — and is positioned to help DLE operators dramatically improve efficiency and reduce operating costs.
The company sees a pathway to scaling far beyond Arkansas.
“The short-term game is, we need to go get $500 billion of lithium out of the ground,” Milligan said. “The long-term game is, can we develop technologies and companies that can … go outside of this Smackover, go outside of Arkansas?”
Tyfast of San Diego
Tyfast develops extreme-duty, fast-charging batteries for commercial and defense platforms using its patented lithium-vanadium oxide (LVO) anode. The company already sources vanadium oxide from Hot Springs and aims to co-locate its entire midstream and manufacturing pipeline in Arkansas.
CEO GJ Ia O’ said Tyfast wants to:
Build an Arkansas-based LVO materials pipeline
Scale to “tens of jobs” producing metric tons of battery-grade material
Eventually source both vanadium and Smackover lithium locally
Construct a full battery factory powering U.S. heavy-duty and defense sectors
“In the future, we want to export this technology throughout the world,” he said.
Local Color
Following the kickoff, the cohort spent two days in South Arkansas meeting with local officials, educators, workforce leaders and government partners. They also toured:
Standard Lithium’s direct lithium extraction demonstration plant at Lanxess in El Dorado.
Tetra Technologies Inc.’s under-construction bromine production plant near Stamps in Lafayette County.
(The cohort at the Standard Lithium demonstration plant at Lanxess in El Dorado; photo by Valarie Smith. The group at Tetra Technologies’ bromine production plant, under construction near Stamps in Lafayette County; photo by Sarah Thomas.)
What’s Next
Dec. 8-10 in Little Rock
ALTA’s second stage begins with an 11:30 a.m. luncheon on Monday, Dec. 8, at The Venture Center’s headquarters in the Little Rock Technology Park. The event features Commerce Secretary Hugh McDonald, Standard Lithium leaders and the cohort, launching three days of programming in the capital city.
Dec. 15-17 in Northwest Arkansas
The program concludes with a Dec. 17 Demo Day at the Record in Bentonville, wrapping up three days of investor meetings, site visits and ecosystem engagement.
With cutting-edge extraction, water-processing and battery-material companies anchoring its second accelerator, ALTA is working to position Arkansas as a full-spectrum innovation hub — from the brine fields of the Smackover to the nation’s next-generation energy and defense technologies.
More: News coverage of the ALTA cohort in the Magnolia Reporter, Talk Business & Politics and Arkansas Money & Politics.
Previously: The Venture Center launched the first ALTA cohort — Telescope Innovations of Vancouver, RAM Geothermal of Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Nano One Materials Corp. of Vancouver — in July.
(Photos 1 & 3: The cohort at the Tetra bromine plant construction site. Photo 2: The cohort. tours Standard Lithium’s demonstration plant.)
Video: Magnolia Moves Early to Meet the Moment
The city of Magnolia is wasting no time preparing for South Arkansas’ approaching lithium economy, and community developer Kelli Souter says the work is underway now to capture the full opportunity.
With multiple companies scouting the Smackover Formation for commercial-scale lithium extraction, Magnolia is positioning itself as a ready-made home base for incoming workers, suppliers and long-term industrial investment.
What She’s Saying
In an interview, Souter told Lithium Link that the city is treating preparedness as a shared responsibility.
“You have to create the community you want to live in — it doesn’t happen organically,” she said. “I may hold the title, but every person who lives in Magnolia is a community developer.”
Developers are already eyeing the area — hotel groups, multifamily projects and even a Canadian firm exploring a 500-home development just outside city limits. Souter said Magnolia, led by Mayor Parnell Vann, has been preparing the way:
The city is advancing infrastructure to meet that interest, extending water lines and supporting new housing capacity to accommodate workforce growth.
Voters also approved a sales-and-use tax bond refinance that’s now funding repaving 56 miles of city streets and $10 million in combined water and sewer upgrades.
Community Mindset
Even as rapid growth approaches, Souter said Magnolia intends to keep its sense of identity.
“We won’t change who we are,” she said. “We’re going to strengthen it.”
More: Watch the full interview to hear Souter discuss housing readiness, infrastructure planning, business recruitment and how Magnolia is coordinating community-wide for the lithium era.
Bonus Interview
Rachel Jenkins, executive director of the Magnolia-Columbia County Chamber of Commerce, tells Lithium Link about the area’s economy and how she’s fielding calls and working with businesses and industry interested in what the area has to offer:
What We’re Reading
Here’s a quick sample of other lithium-related news we’re reading and watching:
Ainsley Platt of the Arkansas Advocate reports on the state of Arkansas’ lithium industry, writing that business leaders and government boosters remain optimistic despite market challenges and growing demand for resources in South Arkansas.| Read the article
Reuters reports that Tetra Technologies is considering a joint venture with startup Magrathea to build the country’s only magnesium refinery, in Arkansas’ Smackover Formation. Why did it choose Arkansas? "More than anything, it's building in a place where people want to actually build stuff," Magrathea’s CEO said. | Read the article
The Magnolia Reporter also reports on the potential Tetra-Magrathea tie-up. | Read the article
