Biden administration approves ioneer's Nevada lithium mine (updated)

Ioneer

24/10/2024 20:37

* 
      First U.S. lithium mine permitted by the Biden
administration
    

        * 
      Interior Department says decision was 'science based'
    

        * 
      Mine will supply lithium for 370,000 electric vehicles
annually
    

        * 
      Construction to begin next year, production by 2028
    

        * 
      Rare flower will have significant protections, officials
say
    

        * 
      Center for Biological Diversity plans to sue to block the
mine
    

  
 (Adds stock movement in paragraph 2 and conservation group's
plan to sue and the Interior Department's comment in paragraphs
15-18)
    By Ernest Scheyder
       Oct 24 (Reuters) - The U.S. Interior Department on
Thursday gave final approval to ioneer's  INR.AX  Rhyolite Ridge
lithium mine in Nevada, the first domestic source of the battery
metal to be permitted by President Joe Biden's administration
and one that will become a key supplier to Ford  F.N  and other
electric vehicle manufacturers.
    Shares of the Australia-based critical minerals miner jumped
more than 20% in New York trading on Thursday afternoon before
easing down.
    The approval ends a more-than six-year review process during
which regulators, ioneer and conservationists tussled over the
fate of a rare flower found at the mine site, a tension that
exposed the sometimes competing priorities between climate
change mitigation efforts and biodiversity protection.
    The permit, which had been expected by the end of the year,
comes amid a flurry of recent moves by Biden officials to
support critical minerals production and offset China's market
dominance. 
    It also unlocks a $700 million loan from the U.S. Department
of Energy, as well as a $490 million equity investment from
Sibanye Stillwater  SSWJ.J  to fund the project.
    "This is a science-based decision," Laura Daniel-Davis, the
Interior Department's acting deputy secretary, told Reuters.
"We're trying to send a signal that there's no topic with
greater importance than addressing climate change."
    The U.S. Bureau of Land Management, which is controlled by
the Interior Department, on Thursday issued the Rhyolite Ridge
project's record of decision - essentially the mine's permit -
and said the project will "include significant protections for
the local ecosystem" and help create hundreds of jobs in the
rural region. 
    The project, roughly 225 miles (362 km) north of Las Vegas,
contains enough lithium to power roughly 370,000 EVs each year.
Construction is slated to begin next year, with production
commencing by 2028, a timeline that would make Rhyolite Ridge
one of the largest U.S. lithium producers alongside Albemarle
 ALB.N  and Lithium Americas  LAC.TO . 
    The U.S. Geological Survey has labeled lithium a critical
mineral vital for the U.S. economy and national security. 
    "We're proud to be the first U.S. lithium mine permitted by
the Biden administration," James Calaway, ioneer's chairman,
told Reuters.
    The project will extract lithium as well as boron - a
chemical used to make ceramics and soaps - from a clay-like
deposit. The lithium will be processed on site into two main
derivatives used to make batteries, and the company said it
plans to recycle half of all the water used at the site, higher
than the industry average.
    Ford and a joint venture between Toyota  7203.T  and
Panasonic  6752.T  have agreed to buy lithium from the mine.
    
    ENDANGERED FLOWER
    In addition to the lithium and boron deposits, Rhyolite
Ridge is home to the Tiehm's buckwheat flower, which is found
nowhere else on the planet and was declared an endangered
species in 2022. 
    The Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) and some other
conservation groups thus oppose ioneer's project, saying it
would push the flower to the brink of extinction. 
        After the permit was announced on Thursday, the CBD said
it plans to sue the federal government to block the project.
  
        "By greenlighting this mine, the Bureau of Land
Management is abandoning its duty to protect endangered species
like Tiehm's buckwheat and it's making a mockery of the
Endangered Species Act," said the CBD's Patrick Donnelly.
  
        The Interior Department's Daniel-Davis declined to
comment on the potential litigation, but noted the changes made
to the mine's operating plan as a result of the permit review
process, including new design plans and propagation efforts that
included construction of a greenhouse. Department officials also
released an opinion stating their belief that the mine would not
harm the flower.    
    "We have run a transparent process," said Daniel-Davis. "The
company was willing to reconfigure its entire project to take
into account Tiehm's buckwheat."    
    The death of more than 17,000 flowers near the mine site in
2020 sparked allegations of a "premeditated" attack. Ioneer
denied harming the flowers. The government later blamed thirsty
squirrels.

 (Reporting by Ernest Scheyder
Editing by Marguerita Choy)
 ((ernest.scheyder@thomsonreuters.com; X: @ErnestScheyder;
+1-469-691-7667; Reuters Messaging:
ernest.scheyder.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))