Toyota-Panasonic battery JV to buy lithium from ioneer's Nevada mine

ECOPRO

31/07/2022 23:58

By Ernest Scheyder
    July 31 (Reuters) - A joint battery venture of Toyota Motor
Corp  7203.T  and Panasonic Corp  6752.T  will buy lithium from
ioneer Ltd's  INR.AX  Rhyolite Ridge mining project and use the
metal to build electric vehicle batteries in the United States.
    The binding supply deal, announced on Sunday, is the second
in less than a month for ioneer and a strong vote of confidence
in a project that is racing to be the first new U.S. source of
the battery metal in decades.
    Under the terms of the deal, ioneer will supply 4,000 tonnes
of lithium carbonate annually for five years to Prime Planet
Energy & Solutions (PPES), which was formed by Toyota and
Panasonic in 2020 to better compete https://www.reuters.com/article/toyota-panasonic-batteries/toyota-panasonic-battery-jv-to-boost-efficiency-to-catch-up-with-chinese-rivals-idUSKBN27C0XD
 with battery market leader Contemporary Amperex Technology Co
Ltd (CATL)  300750.SZ .
    Supplies are slated to begin in 2025, a timeline that
depends in part on ioneer obtaining financing https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/australias-ioneer-says-us-govt-loan-application-moves-forward-2021-12-19/#:~:text=Dec%2020%20(Reuters)%20-%20Australia,supply%20the%20electric%20vehicle%20industry
 and permitting https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/us-regulators-preserve-acreage-near-ioneers-lithium-mine-site-2022-02-02.
 
    The deal includes a commitment from PPES that ioneer's
lithium will be used to build EV battery parts inside the United
States for the U.S. EV market. PPES, which is based in Japan,
has reportedly been considering building a battery plant in
western North Carolina.
    "The whole purpose of this agreement is for this lithium to
be used in the United States," James Calaway, ioneer's executive
chairman, told Reuters. 
    A proposed expansion https://www.reuters.com/markets/deals/senate-democratic-deal-includes-new-ev-tax-credits-2022-07-28
 of the U.S. EV tax credit would require that lithium and other
EV minerals be sourced domestically or from allies starting as
soon as next year. That potential change, which is under debate
in Congress, has shown a spotlight on the nascent U.S.
development plans of battery and automakers.
    "Having an agreement with ioneer provides PPES a first step
in securing a U.S. supply of lithium," said PPES President
Hiroaki Koda, who added he has "confidence in ioneer's
technology."
    The amount of lithium that ioneer will supply PPES is enough
to make batteries for about 150,000 EVs annually, though that
figure would vary depending on design and other factors.
    Australia-based ioneer aims to produce about 21,000 tonnes
of lithium in Nevada annually starting in 2025. It signed a
supply deal with Ford Motor https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/ford-buy-lithium-ioneer-american-ev-battery-plant-2022-07-21
 Co  F.N  in mid-July and last year with South Korea's Ecopro https://www.reuters.com/article/ioneer-deals-ecorpo/australias-ioneer-signs-lithium-offtake-deal-with-south-koreas-ecopro-idINL3N2OC0RA
 Co  086520.KQ . 
    The Rhyolite Ridge project has faced push back from some
conservationists who worry it could harm a rare flower https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-mining-insight-idCAKCN2AT39Z
 known as Tiehm's buckwheat, though ioneer has said it believes
it can safely extract lithium while also protecting the plant.
    "We've figured out how we can build the mine and not touch
the Tiehm's buckwheat," said Calaway.    

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Ford to buy lithium from ioneer for U.S. EV battery plant    
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U.S. Senate Democratic electric vehicle tax credit plan faces
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Australia's ioneer says U.S. gov't loan application moves
forward     urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2T40HF
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 (Reporting by Ernest Scheyder in Houston; Editing by Daniel
Wallis)
 ((ernest.scheyder@thomsonreuters.com; Twitter: @ErnestScheyder;
+1-713-210-8512; Reuters Messaging:
ernest.scheyder.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))