Column: Trump 2.0 won’t reverse Biden’s critical minerals push
Donald Trump has described the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) as a "green scam" and vowed to repeal it after he returns to the White House in January.
Piedmont Lithium (NASDAQ, ASX: PLL) announced Thursday that it has signed agreements with LG Chem for a $75 million equity investment and offtake of 200,000 tonnes of spodumene concentrate from Piedmont’s jointly owned North American Lithium (NAL) over a four-year term.
LG Chem will purchase around 1.1 million newly issued shares of Piedmont common stock at $68.40 per share for a total consideration of $75 million. Closing is expected on or around February 24, Piedmont said, and will result in LG Chem holding approximately 5.7% of Piedmont common shares.
Piedmont has agreed to supply LG Chem with 50,000 tonnes per year of SC6 for four years with planned shipments beginning in Q3 2023. LG Chem will use the material to support its plans to produce cathode materials for North American customers as well as the intentions of the US Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.
Piedmont will provide LG Chem priority negotiation rights for 10,000 tonnes per year of lithium hydroxide produced by the company at either of its proposed facilities in Tennessee or North Carolina.
“We welcome LG Chem as a shareholder in Piedmont and are excited to partner with them to supply North American lithium that will meet the requirements of the IRA and support the development of the US battery supply chain,” Piedmont CEO Keith Phillips said in a statement.
NAL is a project of Sayona Quebec, a joint venture between Piedmont and Sayona Mining Limited (ASX: SYA). SC6 production at NAL is expected to restart in H1 2023, with commercial shipments expected to begin in Q3 2023.
Piedmont’s offtake agreement with Sayona Quebec entitles Piedmont to purchase the greater of 113,000 tonnes per year or 50% of the joint venture’s SC6 production.
Piedmont intends to use the funding from LG Chem to advance its portfolio of projects, including its planned 30,000-tonne-per-year lithium hydroxide project at Tennessee Lithium, the Ewoyaa Lithium project in Ghana in partnership with Atlantic Lithium, and the Carolina Lithium project in development in North Carolina, as well as for general corporate purposes.
Piedmont Lithium’s stock was up over 3% on the NASDAQ in afternoon trading. The company has a $1.34 billion market cap.
