“[It is] good to see GM still plowing ahead, just what is needed as the weak patch [in demand] will be temporary, and it will be vital for Western supply chains to continue to secure non-Chinese supply because Western demand will get bigger,” Fastmarkets’ head of base metals and battery research William Adams said.
“With more big companies such as GM, Rio Tinto, Exxon and Equinor getting more involved, the West will have a better chance of keeping up with China at the mine level; they just need to do the same at the processing, pCAM [precursor cathode active material], CAM [cathode active material], and battery levels,” Adams added.
Battery production in the US reached 70 GWh of EV batteries in 2023, and the country imports 30% of its EV battery demand, according to an International Energy Agency (IEA) report released in April.
China currently holds around 90% of global installed CAM manufacturing capacity and more than 97% of anode active material manufacturing capacity, according to the IEA.
$2.3 billion DOE loan
On March 12, Lithium Americas received a conditional commitment for a $2.3 billion loan from the US Department of Energy under the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing (ATVM) Loan Program.
Under the newly announced JV agreement, GM will acquire a 38% asset-level ownership stake in Thacker Pass for $625 million in total cash and letters of credit that will be used as collateral to support reserve account requirements under the DOE loan, LAC said in a statement.
“GM’s JV Investment demonstrates their continued support and helps us to unlock the previously announced $2.3 billion DOE Loan. We will be working closely with GM to advance towards the final investment decision, which we are targeting by the end of the year,” LAC president and chief executive officer Jonathan Evans said in the statement.
“[The] largest-ever publicly announced investment by a US [original equipment manufacturer] in a lithium carbonate project highlights the strategic importance of Thacker Pass in creating a domestic supply chain for critical minerals,” according to LAC.
Fastmarkets lithium price assessment
Fastmarkets launched its standalone battery-grade lithium carbonate price for the North American market in April.
Fastmarkets assessed the lithium carbonate 99.5% Li2CO3 min, battery grade, spot price ddp US and Canada at $12.80-14.00 per kg on Thursday October 17, down from $13.00-14.50 per kg at the time of its launch on April 4.
“We’re pleased with the significant progress that Lithium Americas is making to help GM achieve our goal to develop a resilient EV material supply chain,” Jeff Morrison, GM’s senior vice president of global purchasing and supply chain, said in the statement.
“Sourcing critical EV raw materials, like lithium, from suppliers in the US is expected to help us manage battery cell costs, deliver value to our customers and investors, and create jobs,” he added.
Earlier in the month, GM said it was looking to expand its range of battery chemistries in the US to include lithium-iron phosphate batteries, which use lithium carbonate.
The agreement between the companies also extends GM’s offtake agreement for up to 100% of production volumes from Phase 1 of Thacker Pass to 20 years. Upon closing the transaction, GM will also enter into an additional 20-year offtake agreement for up to 38% of production volumes from Phase 2.
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