Battery Technology Innovation/Electric Vehicles – Page 58

Falling Lithium Prices Are Making Electric Cars More Affordable – by Jack Ewing and Clifford Krauss (New York Times – March 20, 2023)

March 22, 2023

https://www.nytimes.com/

Lithium, the common ingredient in almost all electric-car batteries, has become so precious that it is often called white gold. But something surprising has happened recently: The metal’s price has fallen, helping to make electric vehicles more affordable.

Since January, the price of lithium has dropped nearly 20 percent, according to Benchmark Minerals, even as sales of electric vehicles have soared. Cobalt, another important battery material, has fallen by more than half. Copper, essential to electric motors and batteries, has slipped about 18 percent, even though U.S. mines and copper-rich countries like Peru are struggling to increase production.

Volkswagen to invest in mines in bid to become global battery supplier – (CTV News – March 17, 2023)

March 22, 2023March 22, 2023

https://www.ctvnews.ca/

BERLIN – Volkswagen plans to invest in mines to bring down the cost of battery cells, meet half of its own demand and sell to third-party customers, the carmaker’s board member in charge of technology said.

Its strategy aligns with a wider trend of carmakers seeking greater control over parts of the supply chain traditionally left to third parties, from energy generation to raw material sourcing, as they compete for scarce resources they urgently need to meet electrification targets.

Nevada lithium mine breaks ground despite Indigenous opposition – by Hilary Beaumont (Al Jazeera – March 15, 2023)

March 17, 2023

https://www.aljazeera.com/

Los Angeles, California, the US – Construction is under way at the Thacker Pass lithium mine in northern Nevada after a federal court denied opponents’ requests for an injunction. Lithium Americas, a mining company headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, said in a news release this month that workers were drilling at the site and building infrastructure, including water pipelines.

General Motors, which wants United States lithium for electric vehicle batteries, announced earlier this year that it would invest $650m in Lithium Americas if the mine cleared legal and regulatory hurdles.

Activist shareholders accuse Azimut Exploration of ‘squatting’ on Quebec lithium lands – by Henry Lazenby (Mining.com – March 16, 2023)

March 17, 2023

https://www.mining.com/

Two activist shareholders with ‘substantial’ holdings in Azimut Exploration (TSXV: AZM) have accused the junior of “squatting” on some of Quebec’s most prospective lithium lands.

Coloured Ties Capital (TSXV: TIE) and privately held Bullrun Capital this week issued a second open letter to Azimut’s founder, president and CEO Jean-Marc Lulin, accusing the geologist of refusing to acknowledge or engage with them about its detailed exploration plans for its James Bay lithium portfolio.

Mineral-rich North energized by news of VW battery plant – by Ron Grech (Timmins Daily Press – March 15,2023)

March 16, 2023

https://www.timminspress.com/

‘It’s all about connecting our critical mineral producers in the North’ with manufacturers in the South – Pirie

ST. THOMAS — Volkswagen’s announced plans to establish a battery cell plant in Southern Ontario is good news for Northern Ontario, says Mines Minister and Timmins MPP George Pirie. “If we’re going to secure our supply chain (for the electric vehicle industry) we have to get the minerals out of the ground in Northern Ontario,” Pirie told The Daily Press.

“Nickel is a critical mineral, copper, niobium, rare earths, lithium – we’ve got them all. There are four huge low-grade deposits in the Timmins vicinity including Canada Nickel … It’s a hugely exciting time.

Inside the Volkswagen deal: How Canada fought off the U.S. to land a coveted electric vehicle battery plant – by Tonda MacCharles (Toronto Star – March 15, 2023)

March 15, 2023

https://www.thestar.com/

OTTAWA—An intense Canadian lobbying effort to woo Volkswagen to build an electric vehicle battery plant in Ontario began more than a year ago, and ended with an hour’s notice on Monday when the global automaker finally made its decision public.

The German-based company capped months of speculation with a simple news release out of its headquarters in Wolfsburg. No fanfare or fancy political photo op with top global auto executives, the premier, the prime minister or the ministers who crisscrossed the Atlantic to plead Canada’s case even as the United States also fiercely competed for Volkswagen’s attention.

Philippine Miners Not Keen on Indonesia Nickel Alliance Plan – by Manolo Serapio Jr. and Ditas Lopez (Bloomberg News – March 14, 2023)

March 15, 2023

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — A plan by top nickel miner Indonesia to create an OPEC-like group to coordinate supply would not benefit the Philippines, the No. 2 producer, according to an industry group.

The Philippines mined a 10th of the in-demand metal that’s used in electric vehicle batteries last year, according to the US Geological Survey, and mainly exports nickel ore to China. That’s well behind Indonesia, which accounted for almost half of global output, and floated the idea of a producer alliance late last year.

China’s Lithium Probe Puts Spotlight on Reserves and ESG Risks – by Annie Lee (Bloomberg News – March 9, 2023)

March 13, 2023

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — If it’s grown, drilled or dug up, chances are there’s not enough of it in China. Beijing’s ability to manage the mismatch between its scarce natural resources and vast industrial output is now playing out in the market for lithium, a mineral crucial to the world’s transition away from fossil fuels.

It’s an effort complicated by skyrocketing prices, geopolitical tensions and the environmental devastation that can be wrought by a pell-mell approach to extraction. China is the world’s biggest producer of new energy vehicles but holds only a modest slice of global reserves of lithium, used in the batteries that power electric cars.

A “Minerals Club” Could Help Untie Us From Authoritarian Regimes, But Leaders Must Resist Nationalistic Impulses – by Christine McDaniel (Forbes Magazine – March 11, 2023)

March 13, 2023

https://www.forbes.com/

US President Joe Biden and European Commission leader Ursula von der Leyen on Friday vowed “cooperation on diversifying critical mineral and battery supply chains.” Dialing down trade tensions with our allies is a welcome development. There has even been talk of a “Critical Minerals Club,” which could be a first step toward an efficient market for these sought-after minerals, while unwinding dependencies on authoritarian regimes.

Transitioning from hydrocarbons toward renewable energy sources like wind and solar, as well as lithium-ion batteries to run electric vehicles, is going to take a lot of critical minerals that we don’t have.

Indonesian farmers fight for their land in nickel mining boom (France24.com – March 13, 2023)

March 13, 2023

https://www.france24.com/en/

Wawonii (Indonesia) (AFP) – Three women with machetes stood guard at their farm hilltop on Indonesia’s Wawonii Island, directing their blades towards the nickel miners working in the forest clearing below. “I pointed the machete at their faces. I told them: ‘If you scratch this land, heads will fly, we will defend this land to the death’,” said 42-year-old villager Royani, recounting a recent encounter with some of the miners.

The dig site is part of a huge rush to Indonesia, the world’s largest nickel producer, by domestic and foreign enterprises to mine the critical component used in electric vehicle batteries.

Volkswagen picks Ontario for its first North American EV battery plant – by Adam Radwanski (Globe and Mail – March 13, 2023)

March 13, 2023

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Volkswagen Group will build its first North American battery factory in Southwestern Ontario, one of the biggest milestones to date in this country’s efforts to establish itself as a major player in electric-vehicle manufacturing.

The German auto-making giant said on Monday that it has chosen St. Thomas as the site for the facility, after considering locations in both Canada and the United States. It’s a decision that will make waves across the auto sector, especially given aggressive competition from U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration to compete for such investments.

PDAC reinforces importance of critical minerals – by Kelsey Rolfe (Canadian Mining Journal – March 9, 2023)

March 10, 2023

https://magazine.cim.org/en/

The increasing demand for critical minerals such as copper, zinc and cobalt factored prominently during the first day of the annual Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada’s 2023 conference in Toronto. But a new report, released in time for the convention, forecast that junior and intermediate miners will face exploration budget challenges in 2023 that could slow the project pipeline for those metals.

During the conference’s commodities session on March 5, Randy Smallwood, chief executive officer of Wheaton Precious Metals, highlighted the drivers behind five commodities and potential headwinds facing each metal.

LEAK: EU Commission wants 10% of critical raw materials mined in Europe – by Oliver Noyan (EURACTIV.com – March 7, 2023)

March 10, 2023

https://www.euractiv.com/

To boost EU autonomy, the European Commission is seeking to introduce targets of 10%-40% of the mining, recycling, and processing of critical raw materials used in the bloc to be done in the EU by 2030.

A draft version of the EU’s Critical Raw Materials Act, seen by EURACTIV and set to be presented by the European Commission next Tuesday (14 March), will introduce targets for Europe’s self-sufficiency along the entire value chain.

Sudbury’s mine waste worth billions; new project to find ways of extracting valuable minerals – by Staff (Sudbury Star – March 8, 2023)

March 9, 2023

https://www.thesudburystar.com/

Vale, province to pay for new industrial research chair program in biomining and bioremediation to be based in Sudbury

Mine waste in the Sudbury area may be worth billions and it’s Nadia Mykytczuk’s job to find ways using bacteria to extract the valuable nickel, copper and other critical minerals out of them.

Her job got a lot easier Wednesday when Vale Energy Transition Metals and the provincial government announced money to support a new industrial research chair program in biomining and bioremediation that she will lead in Sudbury. Vale Energy committed $875,000 over five years to the Mining Innovation, Rehabilitation, and Applied Research Corporation (MIRARCO) at Laurentian University.

OPINION: How much is Canada willing to pay for a battery plant in the Great Subsidy War? – by Campbell Clark (Globe and Mail – March 9, 2023)

March 9, 2023

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Imagine for a moment what would happen if Canada’s auto industry was sucked away into the United States. Tens of thousands of jobs and a big chunk of the $19-billion a year the sector contributes to Canada’s gross domestic product would slip away. How much would a Canadian government pay to stop that?

That’s a question the current government in Ottawa seems to think it is facing. It’s a debatable point in and of itself, but the Liberals are out to secure electric-vehicle battery plants in Canada because they think that is key to keeping an active auto industry in Canada – and also that it will build a battery sector, too.