India seeks overseas help for lithium processing to avoid relying on China

Shree Cement

25/04/2024 10:43

By Neha Arora
       NEW DELHI, April 25 (Reuters) - India is in talks with
several countries seeking partnerships for technical help on
lithium processing, said four sources familiar with the matter,
to bolster its nascent lithium mining and electric vehicle
industries and avoid relying on China.   
    India's Ministry of Mines began discussions with Australia
and the United States last year, said the four sources, two from
India's government and two industry participants. The Indian
government and some private companies have also sought help from
Bolivia, Britain, Japan, and South Korea, said the sources, who
did not wish to be identified as the discussions were not
public. 
    Executives from Russia's TENEX, part of state-owned nuclear
energy company Rosatom, approached the Indian government and
have held at least two meetings with Indian officials this year,
offering lithium processing technology and the possibility of 
collaborating with Indian companies, said one of the sources, a
senior government official with direct knowledge of the plans.
    The discussions illustrate efforts by India, the world's
third-largest carbon emitter and oil importer, to develop a
lithium mining industry that could provide the chemical
feedstocks for batteries for its domestic electric vehicle (EV)
industry which could help cut its greenhouse gas emissions and
oil dependence.
    "India needs technology to process lithium and we are
looking to collaborate with other countries which have some
experience," said the senior government official. "We are aiming
to be self-reliant and one of the ways is through partnerships."
    TENEX, Russia's Ministry of Industry and Trade and India's
Ministry of Mines did not respond to emails from Reuters seeking
comments. Russia's Rosatom declined to comment.
    New Delhi is in the process of auctioning its first mining
rights to lithium blocks, which were discovered last year in the
Jammu and Kashmir region and the states of Chhattisgarh.
    Companies including SoftBank-backed e-scooter maker Ola
Electric, Shree Cement  SHCM.NS , state-run Coal India
 COAL.NS , miner Vedanta Ltd  VDAN.NS  and Jindal Power are
among those bidding for critical minerals blocks, which include
lithium, with a shortlist expected by July.
    Winners will receive licences to explore and mine lithium,
and will also be responsible for processing it as lithium
concentrates or lithium chemicals for the battery industry.
    Some of the companies that have bid for the lithium mining
rights have sought technical help from companies in other
countries to set up refining plants, the sources said.
    Shree Cement is in talks with an Australian firm seeking
technical assistance for a lithium refinery that would cost
between $600 million and $700 million, a company source said,
without giving the name. 
      
    'LONG AND BUMPY'
    Even with outside help, it will take a few years before
India is ready to convert lithium ores into material for battery
manufacturing, analysts said.
    "The path to commercialisation is likely to be long and
bumpy, especially given that it typically takes anywhere between
four to seven years from discovery to commercial production for
lithium mines," said Ritabrata Ghosh, vice-president and sector
head of corporate ratings at ICRA Ltd. 
    India needs technical help in ore processing steps such as
beneficiation to separate waste rock from ore, and
hydrometallurgy, leaching, and pyrometallurgy for separating the
 metal from the ore, Ghosh said.
    In the absence of processing plants, Indian companies would
likely ship lithium ores to China and bring the processed metal
back to India, said Ganesh Sivamani, research associate at the
Centre for Social and Economic Progress, a New Delhi-based think
tank.
    Neighbour and rival China accounts for almost two-thirds of
the world's lithium processing capacity.
    The government's top policy think-tank NITI Aayog has
recommended incentives for setting up lithium processing plants.
India's battery industry will require an annual 56,000 metric
tons of lithium carbonate by 2030, according to NITI Aayog.
   

 (Reporting by Neha Arora; Additional reporting by Moscow
Bureau, Melanie Burton in Melbourne and Aditi Shah in New Delhi;
Editing by Mayank Bhardwaj, Tony Munroe and Christian
Schmollinger)
 ((mayank.bhardwaj@thomsonreuters.com; Twitter:
@MayankBhardwaj9;))