The steep declines are on the back of valuation concerns, easing lithium prices and mixed operating updates. Both Vulcan Energy and Lake Resources rely on the development and application of direct lithium extraction (DLE) technologies to meet their ambitious production forecasts. The value proposition from DLE technologies is large on paper, but the technology has not yet proved it can work at scale, wrote Daniel Jimenez, Morgan Stanley’s lithium consultant, in a research note to clients on Monday. The same day, Vulcan lifted its total capital expenditure projections for its European lithium project using a DLE to €1.5 billion ($2.3…