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Lithium

Container fire under control at Port of Montreal – by Harry North (Montreal Gazette – September 23, 2024)

https://montrealgazette.com/

The fire, in a container with lithium batteries, produced enough smoke that the city asked residents to stay inside and close their windows.

Montreal’s fire department said late Monday it had contained a fire in a container at the Port of Montreal holding 15,000 kilograms of lithium batteries.

Some residents of the Mercier—Hochelaga-Maisonneuve borough were advised to stay in their homes Monday evening and close their windows as foul-smelling smoke filled the area. The city confirmed around 10:30 p.m. that the confinement advisory had been lifted and the air did not pose any danger to residents.

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US closer to greenlighting ioneer’s Nevada lithium mine – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – September 19, 2024)

https://www.mining.com/

The US Bureau of Land Management (BLM) cleared on Thursday one of the final regulatory hurdles for ioneer’s (ASX: INR) Rhyolite Ridge lithium mine in Nevada, a project that would be a key supplier of the electric vehicle battery metal to the local auto industry.

The proposed lithium mine, about 225 miles (362 km) north of Las Vegas, contains one of the largest sources of lithium in North America. It could produce enough of the metal to power nearly 370,000 electric vehicles per year.

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Death Threats and Detained Pop Stars: Inside Serbia’s Lithium Battle – by Kate Aronoff (The New Republic – September 19, 2024)

https://newrepublic.com/

The mining giant Rio Tinto is moving ahead with a novel form of lithium extraction in Serbia’s Jadar Valley. Powerful governments want to see it succeed. But critics say it could contaminate drinking water for a third of the population.

On her way to sing at a birthday party last month, Croatian pop star Severina Vučković was stopped and questioned about her political views by Serbian authorities. Around the same time, Aleksandar Matković started receiving death threats on Telegram.

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Winsome Resources confirms Canadian lithium project’s potential – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – September 17, 2024)

https://www.mining.com/

Australia’s Winsome Resources  said a scoping study for its $259 million Adina lithium project in Quebec, Canada, has reinforced the asset’s potential as a capital-efficient mine with a 17-year productive life.

The company inked a deal in April to acquire the Renard diamond mine and plant in northern Quebec with the goal of repurposing the existing infrastructure for processing ore from Adina. The lithium explorer and developer bought itself in August an extra three months to decide whether it would buy the past-producing mine, and today’s announcement suggests it would move in that direction.

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Argentina’s Economic Crisis Thwarts Bid to Go Nuclear With Lithium Bounty – by Jonathan Gilbert (Bloomberg News – September 17, 2024)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — Nuclear scientists eager to add value to Argentina’s lithium bounty are being stymied by the country’s notorious economic problems.

For decades, the nation’s world-renowned atomic researchers have toiled on projects in Buenos Aires and Bariloche in Patagonia. Now, with Argentina emerging as the fastest-growing producer of lithium needed for the global shift to electric energy, they’re working on innovations to convert the battery metal into something scarcer than gold: lithium-6 isotopes that have key nuclear applications.

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What will Ottawa do about a wave of deals for junior lithium miners? – by Andrew Willis (Globe and Mail – September 17, 2024)

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

A wave of takeovers is poised to reshape the lithium mining industry, with global giant Rio Tinto Ltd. projected to become the dominant producer of an essential metal in a decarbonized economy.

With analysts predicting acquisitions are coming, how is the Canadian government that’s previously pledged to build a domestic critical mineral industry to going to react when foreign buyers begin circling a handful of domestic lithium producers? Based on deals done so far, Ottawa will sign off on any acquisition that doesn’t involve a China-based buyer.

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Lithium World Asks If Surprise Mine Shutdown Can Arrest Slump (Bloomberg News – September 12, 2024)

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — An unexpected shutdown at one of China’s biggest lithium mines has left the industry scrambling to judge if the move will be enough to end the battery material’s prolonged price slump.

The share prices of lithium miners from Australia to South America spiked Wednesday after reports that Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd., the world’s biggest battery producer, was suspending a mine that accounts for about 5% to 6% of global supply. Citigroup Inc. boosted its price forecasts, while Chinese futures for the metal surged.

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Nipigon lithium explorer has ‘starting point’ to place a pit – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – September 4, 2024)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Imagine Lithium releases its first mineral resource estimate for its Jackpot Project

A Nipigon-area lithium explorer has produced its first resource estimate on a property that shows open-pit mining potential.

Vancouver’s Imagine Lithium released an 8.4-million tonne lithium oxide resource for its Jackpot Project, 40 kilometres north of the town of Nipigon and 150 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay.

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Lithium prices have crashed this year, squeezing margins at Australian miners – by Clint Jasper (Australian Broadcasting Corporation – September 2, 2024)

https://www.abc.net.au/

It is an essential element of the green energy transition and just a few years ago Australia was in the front seat of a lithium boom, but a new wave of supplies has put their competitive edge under pressure.

Consumers are increasingly opting to drive EVs, and governments continue to invest in solar and wind projects, yet lithium miners have spent the last year watching the price of their ore sinking. Last week, the financial pain inflicted by a year of declining lithium prices was revealed as Australia’s major producers opened their balance sheets up for investors.

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Lithium mine closures just ‘tip of the iceberg’ – by Alex Gluyas (Australian Financial Review – August 26, 2024)

https://www.afr.com/

The lithium sector is facing a wave of mine closures as prices for the battery material continue to decline despite some companies already delaying future projects.

UBS slashed its lithium price forecasts for the 2025 and 2026 calendar year by up to 23 per cent on Monday as it cautioned that not enough supply was being deferred, and global demand for electric vehicles was softening.

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Judge blocks Arizona lithium drilling that tribe says is threat to sacred lands – by Scott Sonner(Associated Press – August 21, 2024)

https://apnews.com/

A federal judge has temporarily blocked exploratory drilling for a lithium project in Arizona that tribal leaders say will harm land they have used for religious and cultural ceremonies for centuries.

Lawyers for the national environmental group Earthjustice and Colorado-based Western Mining Action Project are suing federal land managers on behalf of the Hualapai Tribe. They accuse the U.S. Bureau of Land Management of illegally approving drilling planned by an Australian mining company in the Big Sandy River Basin in northwestern Arizona, about halfway between Phoenix and Las Vegas.

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First Nation in northwestern Ont. moves ahead with permanent bridge, all-season road – by Darren MacDonald (CTV Northern Ontario – August 23, 2024)

https://northernontario.ctvnews.ca/

The Ontario government is partnering with the Whitefeather Forest Community Resource Management Authority and the federal government to build a permanent bridge across the Berens River and an all-season road to Pikangikum First Nation.

The project will “unleash new economic opportunities, create safer travelling conditions, and improve the safety and quality of life for seven First Nation communities north of Red Lake,” the province said in a news release this week.

The Ontario government is partnering with the Whitefeather Forest Community Resource Management Authority and the federal government to build a permanent bridge across the Berens River and an all-season road to Pikangikum First Nation.

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Berens River bridge, road funding will be regional catalyst for northwest First Nations – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – August 22, 2024)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Spring construction start will bring road access to seven remote communities and a proposed lithium mine

The wheels are finally starting to roll on the planned construction of the long-overdue Berens River bridge and an initial 25-kilometre stretch of all-season road to reach Pikangikum First Nation, north of Red Lake.

Kenora-Rainy River MPP and cabinet minister Greg Rickford announced Aug. 21 that the province is partnering with the Whitefeather Forest Community Resource Management Authority and the federal government to build the bridge and an all-season road to Pikangikum.

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SQM profit down 63%, anticipates continued weak lithium prices – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – August 21, 2024)

https://www.mining.com/

Chile’s SQM (NYSE: SQM), the world’s second-biggest lithium producer, reported a sharp 63.2% decline in quarterly profit on the back of slumping prices of the key metal used in the batteries that power electric vehicles and high tech devices.

The company, which also manufactures fertilizers and industrial chemicals, said it expects the downward trend in lithium prices to continue for the rest of the year. SQM’s second-quarter net profit came in at $213.6 million, or 75 cents per share, falling short of analysts’ prediction of $296.7 million, or 95 cents per share, according to LSEG data.

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Northwestern Ont. lithium explorer inks strategic development partner – by Ian Ross (Northern Ontario Business – August 20, 2024)

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Green Technology links with global battery giant EcoPro to joint venture on Nipigon-area lithium mine and Thunder Bay refinery

Australia’s Green Technology Metals has found a South Korean development partner to bring its two lithium deposits in northwestern Ontario into production and help build a refinery in Thunder Bay.

Perth-based Green Tech announced a strategic partnership with South Korean battery giant EcoPro Innovation through a framework agreement that involves an $8-million investment (Australian dollars) into the junior miner.

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