Argentina’s lithium hunters scale back as EV shift slows
The global lithium sector is struggling due to prices that have slumped over 80% since last year.
The global lithium sector is struggling due to prices that have slumped over 80% since last year.
The Centenario project was attractive despite a drop in lithium prices and full ownership would let Eramet decide how to pursue a planned second production facility.
Volt has been operating its proprietary DLE system in the field since September, when it achieved its first lithium production.
The council of Loznica, population around 20,000 about 100 km west of Belgrade, is deciding whether to amend its official plan to allow the 250-hectare development.
The project aims to produce 10,000 tonnes per year of battery-grade lithium hydroxide by 2027.
A majority of GM's deals are for minerals supply, not necessarily JVs, and the automaker likely would continue that approach.
In 2022, the Serbian government revoked licenses for Rio Tinto's Jadar project near Loznica following mass protests by environmental groups.
For its 62% ownership of Thacker Pass, Lithium Americas will contribute $387 million to the JV and act as manager of the project.
Modest by comparison with past splurges, the all-cash deal is a significant and long-awaited expansion of Rio’s bet on lithium.
Arcadium, through a predecessor company, was the first to develop an early version of a DLE technology in the 1990s.