The markets for large flake and flake fines graphite products, on an FOB China basis, all dropped amid slow demand and a depreciation in the Chinese yuan in the week to Thursday June 1, although there were indications of a possible recovery in the CIF Europe market

Ellen Lenny-Pessagno, global vice president for external affairs and sustainability for Albemarle Energy Storage, joins us for a guest blog ahead of giving her insights on a sustainable future ahead of the Fastmarkets Lithium Supply and Battery Raw Materials event in Las Vegas on June 20-22

The ongoing negotiations between Codelco and Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile (SQM) can produce a win-win situation for both parties if some principles are followed

The United States’ Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and ongoing renewable energy transition could reorientate silicon consumption and production dynamics, emphasizing the demand for high-quality material required for solar panels, computer chips and electric vehicles (EVs)

Australian graphite producer EcoGraf has entered into a non-binding cooperation agreement with POSCO international (Posco) for the development of an integrated anode supply chain which would cover flake graphite mining to downstream anode production

Tanzanian graphite company Black Rock Mining has agreed a binding offtake deal with Posco, including a prepayment of $10 million, to feed the South Korean conglomerate's growing anode business

State-owned copper giant Codelco has created two subsidiaries to further its expansion into lithium, a metal Chile has identified as essential not only for the global energy transition but for its own future development

Putailai, one of the major anode producers in China, announced plans to invest $1.5 billion (SEK 15.7 billion) in Zichen Technology (Sweden) AB. to build Europe’s largest factory for anode manufacturing in Sundsvall in central Sweden

US carmaker Ford has secured long-term supplies of battery-grade lithium from major producers Albemarle and Sociedad Quimica y Minera (SQM)

With competition heating up for the metals that are critical for the energy transition, companies that use these metals have been tapping junior miners with significant deposits to ensure supply, even when the start of production at these mines are years away