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  • Aerial shot of Tesla’s lithium-ion battery gigafactory in Nevada.

    First US graphite AAM production begins

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Feb 21, 2024

    Syrah begins production of lithium-ion battery anode material for Tesla and others at Vidalia. A major milestone in breaking America's reliance on China for the minerals critical to the clean energy transition has been reached with the start of operations at Syrah Resources Ltd.'s Vidalia graphite anode materials plant in Louisiana. Being the primary material used for anodes, graphite is the single largest ingredient that goes into the lithium-ion batteries powering electric...

  • Futuristic EV fast charging station.

    An EV battery that charges in five minutes

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Feb 21, 2024

    Indium for lithium battery anode makes fast charging a reality; Cornell researchers look for lighter alternatives. Engineers at Cornell University have developed a lithium battery capable of charging in less than five minutes, with stable performance over extended cycles of charging and discharging. The secret ingredient? Indium. "Range anxiety is a greater barrier to electrification in transportation than any of the other barriers, like cost and capability of batteries, and...

  • Close-up of an electric vehicle charging on a snowy winter day.

    Fluorspar: the forgotten battery mineral

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Feb 19, 2024

    Benchmark Mineral Intelligence forecasts more than 1.6 million metric tons of fluorspar per year will be needed for lithium-ion batteries by 2030. While Elon Musk has not yet implored the mining sector to "please mine more fluorspar," the demand for this mineral critical to lithium-ion batteries has been rising with the adoption of electric vehicles and is expected to continue its upward trajectory through the end of the decade. "While cobalt, nickel, and lithium hog the...

  • Computer rendering of the Stardust Power lithium refinery plant.

    Lithium firm Stardust Power to go public

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Feb 16, 2024

    Company to build Oklahoma refinery that will provide a domestic supply of battery-grade lithium for EVS. Marking a major milestone on its quest to curb America's reliance on China for a battery material critical to transitioning to low-carbon energy and transportation, Stardust Power Inc. has finalized a deal valued at $490 million that will list the emerging domestic lithium refiner on the Nasdaq stock exchange. "Stardust Power aims to solve one of the largest challenges of t...

  • Four executives and dignitaries from Japan and British Columbia, Canada.

    FPX Nickel attracts global investments

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Feb 16, 2024

    Pair of minerals offers potential to lower carbon emissions from mining nickel at Baptiste deposit. The prospect of producing low-carbon nickel needed for lithium-ion batteries and stainless steel at FPX Nickel Corp.'s Baptiste project in central British Columbia has captured the attention of a broad array of global corporations and investors. A road-accessible project about three miles (five kilometers) from rail connected to the deep-water port at Prince Rupert, B.C., the...

  • Bulls representing vanadium and lithium charging each other.

    Vanadium batteries rival lithium-ion

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Feb 5, 2024

    Global industry ramps up as VRFB appeals to grid renewables Solar and wind renewables can generate very cheap electricity, but like good weather, they're intermittent. To achieve a green-energy future of grids running off renewables, enormous amounts of battery storage will be needed to avoid blackouts. The first redox-flow batteries were developed by Lawrence Thaller and his group at NASA in the 1970s as potential energy storage for solar-powered deep-space missions. They...

  • Artist rendering of CTR’s Lithium Valley Campus on shores of the Salton Sea.

    Groundbreaking start for Lithium Valley

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Feb 5, 2024

    EV executives and dignitaries from the Salton Sea to the White House joined CTR to break ground on the Lithium Valley Campus in SoCal. In a landmark event that marks the start of a clean supply of lithium to support America's clean energy transition, industry executives and political dignitaries joined Controlled Thermal Resources on the groundbreaking of the Lithium Valley Campus at its Hell's Kitchen geothermal lithium project in the Salton Sea region of Southern...

  • CEO Mark Selby presenting a nickel core sample.

    Canada's green nickel boom is coming

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Jan 30, 2024

    Canada Nickel Company is well on its way to developing zero-carbon production of nickel, cobalt and iron in what they've coined the emerging Timmins Zero Carbon Nickel District. Founded by CEO Mark Selby in 2019, Canada Nickel's flagship development is Crawford, a nickel project timed perfectly to bolster the shrinking global supply after losing problematic Russian and Chinese resources to a rising need for stable supply with measurable environmental, social, and corporate gov...

  • A metallic dragon with its claws on a graphite stone and the Chinese flag.

    Next US-China trade clash: graphite

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Jan 24, 2024

    In December, China implemented new export controls on graphite, further compounding trade tensions with the United States and other Western nations. This decision reinforces concerns over the fragility of the West's over-reliance on import monopolies and serves to intensify the ongoing search for alternative sources that would otherwise have been considered economically unattractive. Outside of its use in electric vehicle batteries, an application that is rocketing its...

  • Computer rendering of the Stardust Power lithium refinery plant.

    Muskogee to be home to Stardust refinery

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Jan 16, 2024

    Oklahoma port town selected as ideal location to build refinery that produces battery-grade lithium for energy transition. Further solidifying its plans to offer a domestic supply of the lithium needed for America's energy transition, Stardust Power Inc. has selected Southside Industrial Park in Muskogee, Okla., as the home of a refinery that is slated to produce enough battery-grade lithium for roughly 1 million sedan sized electric vehicles per year. "When fully operational,...

  • Computer graphic image of a battery hovering above an electronic motherboard.

    The dangers of a battery 'monoculture'

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Jan 15, 2024

    As 2024 gets underway, the direction of rechargeable battery design continues to have major implications for the mining industry. A range of renewable power technologies are under development and expansion across the globe to replace fossil fuels. These advancements and the continued electric vehicle push driving the need for increased energy storage capacity, continue to add to the world's energy transition minerals shopping list. The numbers are already in – the new mines n...

  • Geologist in hardhat, safety vest collecting samples from a channel cut in rock.

    Two head-to-head Ontario lithium firms

    K. Warner, For Metal Tech News|Updated Jan 1, 2024

    Two companies are in close competition to be the first to officially break ground on commercially productive lithium mines in Ontario, Canada – one local and the other Australian – and that's only a taste of Ontario's promise in the North American lithium rush. Green Technology Metals is a lithium exploration company based in Perth with 100%-owned high-grade spodumene assets in Ontario. The company is prepping for its multi-stage C$1.8 billion Seymour project to start out...

  • ExxonMobil and American flags flying in front of skyscrapers.

    Does lithium boom loom on US horizon?

    Rose Ragsdale, For Metal Tech News|Updated Dec 16, 2023

    The start of ExxonMobil's new lithium production unit in southwestern Arkansas in mid-November highlights rapidly growing industry interest in producing the white mineral from the briny aquifers that proliferate in this region of the United States. Lithium is a crucial component in the manufacture of batteries needed for electric vehicles, and demand for the white mineral is projected to quadruple by 2030. ExxonMobil said its new unit is expected to begin producing the white...

  • A colorful sunset behind commercial Quonset tents at graphite project in Alaska.

    DOD invests $37.5M in Alaska graphite

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Dec 2, 2023

    Graphite One will utilize DPA Title III funds to finalize a feasibility study to develop a mine at Graphite Creek deposit in Alaska. To accelerate the development of a domestic supply chain for the enormous quantities of graphite needed in the lithium batteries for electric vehicles and renewable energy storage, the U.S. Department of Defense has awarded Graphite One Inc. $37.5 million to help complete a feasibility study for an advanced graphite material supply chain that wil...

  • A metallic square with periodic table of elements information for nickel.

    Talon has access to $115 million DOE grant for a North Dakota battery materials plant

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Nov 15, 2023

    Major milestone along the road to supplying Tesla and others with the nickel needed for EV batteries. Passing a major landmark on its path to developing a domestic battery metals supply chain that begins at its high-grade Tamarack nickel project in Minnesota, Talon Metals Corp. has reached definitive terms with the U.S. Department of Energy for a $114.8 million grant to build a battery minerals processing facility in North Dakota. "Our team is excited to reach this funding...

  • A rendering of Tokyo University’s new battery chemistry.

    Tokyo team develops cobalt-free batteries

    A.J. Roan, Metal Tech News|Updated Nov 6, 2023

    With the ongoing difficulties in sourcing ethical, clean materials for electric vehicles and battery storage, researchers from the University of Tokyo have presented a viable alternative to the most controversial element used in lithium-ion batteries – cobalt. High-capacity and reliable rechargeable batteries are increasingly becoming a critical piece of most devices and even modes of transportation. As the need for lithium-ion batteries rises, so too does the demand for c...

  • Two GMG researchers examining graphene for its graphene batteries.

    GMG produces first prototype G-Al pouch

    A.J. Roan, Metal Tech News|Updated Oct 3, 2023

    Exploring an alternate battery technology that would lessen the demand for lithium and, in turn, help enable the transition to clean renewable energy, Graphene Manufacturing Group Ltd. announced the successful production of an initial 500 milliampere-hour graphene-aluminum prototype pouch cell – one of, if not the first of, its kind. Easily regarded as the dominant force for portable power needs, lithium-ion batteries have held a grip on accessible energy for decades. Cheap, r...

  • Region of Becancour, Quebec, that will become Lithium Battery Valley.

    Ford joins Quebec Lithium Battery Valley

    A.J. Roan, Metal Tech News|Updated Aug 22, 2023

    Collaborative investment of C$1.2 billion into future battery cathode facility. Coming out of the region that will hold one of the more prominent footholds for battery-related industries, Ford Motor Company announced an investment of C$1.2 billion (US$885,660) to build a battery cathode manufacturing facility in Becancour, Quebec, for future Ford electric vehicles. Becancour is a small town along the shores of the St. Lawrence River about halfway between Montreal and Quebec...

  • Steam rolls out of stack during lithium recovery testing at Hell’s Kitchen.

    Stellantis invests $100M in Hell's Kitchen

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Aug 18, 2023

    Automaker funds will support the production of green lithium in California; CTR plans to ship first batch in 2027. To support what will be an important American supply of green lithium for the batteries that will power its growing line of electric vehicles, Stellantis has agreed to invest $100 million to advance the development of Controlled Thermal Resources' Hell's Kitchen geothermal lithium project in the Salton Sea area of Southern California. "This substantial investment...

  • Clean energy art showing wind turbines and solar panels inside a battery.

    Xcel Energy to test Liquid Metal battery

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Aug 8, 2023

    Forward-thinking utility works with Ambri on demo-scale deployment of molten metal battery for clean energy storage. With the electric vehicle revolution demanding lithium-ion battery materials faster than mining companies can supply them, alternative systems for stationary renewable energy storage are needed. One such solution is the Ambri Liquid Metal battery that is being tested on a commercial scale by Xcel Energy, a forward-leaning utility company that delivers energy to...

  • Computer graphic of lithium batteries imprinted with green digital dots.

    Nearly $1 trillion needed for batteries

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Aug 1, 2023

    Heavy investment in mining required to ensure enough raw materials are fed to EV battery gigafactories; key to energy future. Benchmark Minerals Intelligence cautions that the gigafactories being erected around the world will be "about as useful as grain silos" unless hundreds of billions of dollars are invested in ensuring that there are plentiful supplies of the cobalt, graphite, lithium, manganese, nickel, and other raw materials these factories require to manufacture the...

  • Close-up of a red 2023 Prius XLE hybrid car on a country highway.

    Has Toyota solved solid-state batteries?

    K. Warner, For Metal Tech News|Updated Jul 25, 2023

    Toyota's track record of conservative interest in an otherwise fervent competition over electric vehicle battery engineering has just turned 180 degrees with the company's shocking revelation of a solid-state battery that charges in ten minutes with a range of 745 miles. Opting to keep a tight lid on this new development until now, Toyota has produced a breakthrough as unexpected as it is contrary to the public relations leanings of most tech and automotive companies who...

  • Yellow recycling bin full of consumer electronics.

    DOE deploys funds for battery recycling

    A.J. Roan, Metal Tech News|Updated Jun 13, 2023

    Piggybacking off its initial Lithium-Ion Battery Recycling Prize, the U.S. Department of Energy announced more than $192 million in new funding for recycling batteries from consumer products, launching an advanced battery research and development consortium. With electric vehicles and stationary energy storage projected to increase the lithium battery market by as much as ten-fold by 2030, DOE says it is essential to invest in sustainable and lower-cost recycling of consumer...

  • Lithium-ion battery co-inventor Dr. Whittingham in 1979 and today.

    ExxonMobil branches into lithium mining

    K. Warner, For Metal Tech News|Updated Jun 7, 2023

    In 2019, Exxon chemist Stanley Whittingham won the Nobel Prize for developing an early iteration of the lithium-ion battery while working at ExxonMobil's Clinton, New Jersey, corporate research lab back in 1973. Exxon even began a short run of manufacturing them in 1976, with early applications including camcorders, laptops, and cell phones. In 1972, the consensus among scientists was that we'd run out of oil in 50 years and had better find new technologies by the year 2000,...

  • A flat solid-state battery against a hexagon and computer circuit background.

    A silver lining to solid-state batteries

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated May 30, 2023

    Duke researchers, machine learning unveil the secrets of silver-enriched compounds that may enable solid-state batteries. With help from machine learning, a team of Duke University researchers has discovered the atomic mechanisms that make silver-rich compounds known as argyrodites among the top contenders for a solid-state battery electrolyte that would completely change the electric vehicle landscape. Whether they use these argyrodites or some other material as the...

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