Stellantis invests $155 mln in Argentine copper mine

McEwen

27/02/2023 17:55

ROME, Feb 27 (Reuters) - Carmaker Stellantis said on
Monday it had invested $155 million to buy a minority stake in a
copper mine in Argentina as part of its global push to secure
raw materials for electric vehicle batteries.
    The company acquired a 14.2% stake in McEwen Copper, a
subsidiary of Canada's McEwen Mining  MUX.TO , which owns the
Los Azules project in Argentina. 
    The $155-million investment will make Stellantis the
second-largest shareholder in McEwen Copper along with Rio Tinto
 RIO.AX , it said in a statement. 
    Los Azules plans to produce 100,000 tons per year of cathode
copper, a key component for car batteries, at 99.9% purity
starting in 2027, the carmaker said. 
    Stellantis, the world's third-largest automotive group by
sales, includes Italy's Fiat and Alfa Romeo, France's Peugeot
and Citroen, and U.S brands Jeep and Ram.
    The group wants 100% of its European passenger car
sales and 50% of its U.S. passenger car and light-duty truck
sales to be battery electric vehicles by 2030.
    In recent months, Stellantis has struck a series of accords
to procure raw materials for electric batteries, including last
month's nickel sulphate supply deal with Finland's Terrafame.

 (Reporting by Alvise Armellini; Editing by David Gregorio)
 ((alvise.armellini@thomsonreuters.com;))