The Elements of Innovation Discovered
The Elements of Innovation Discovered
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Silicon Valley-based EV manufacturer to buy anode material from G1's coming graphite plant in Ohio. Toward its goal of creating sustainable mobility with cars that make the best possible use of the world's resources, California-based Lucid Motors has entered into an agreement to buy domestically produced graphite for the batteries powering its electric vehicles from a processing and recycling plant to be built by Graphite One Inc. in Ohio. "We are committed to accelerating... Full story
Syrah makes large natural graphite sale to Indonesia, steps closer to developing a battery anode global supply chain outside of China. Syrah Resources has delivered a 10,000 metric ton shipment of natural graphite fines from its flagship Balama graphite operation in Mozambique to BTR New Energy Materials in Indonesia, its first large volume natural graphite sale to a battery supply chain participant outside of China. This sale follows an initial trial container shipment to...
Recent studies pay off with major improvements in charging times and conductivity in solid-state lithium-sulfur battery technology. A flurry of scientific advances from Australia to California in recent months could soon propel lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries into direct competition with their lithium-ion cousins. Researchers at the University of Adelaide, Tianjin University in China, and the Australian Synchrotron recently reported results of a study that suggests the next...
German, US scientists work to commercialize energy storage systems designed to offset fluctuations in renewable power production. Researchers at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) in Germany are developing a high-temperature heat storage system that employs liquid-metal technology to enhance the use of renewable energy sources. Highly conductive liquid metals can be heated to more than 700 degrees Celsius (1,290 degrees Fahrenheit) using green electricity to flexibly...
Canadian locals leery of U.S. military investment in Lomiko Metals graphite project in Quebec. Initially, when Lomiko Metals Inc., a mining company based in Surrey, British Columbia announced plans to build a graphite mine in Quebec's Laurentides region, there were fears regarding potential environmental harm, especially to nearby lakes, but objections increased after locals found out the Pentagon was also involved in the project. In May, Lomiko Metals received a grant of...
Steady demand and Cyclone Megan supply disruptions are giving the metal market its day. The recent uptick in manganese prices resulting from Tropical Cyclone Megan causing significant damage to South32's Groote Eylandt Mining Company (GEMCO) manganese mine in Australia has prompted Jupiter Mines to release an update on the manganese market landscape, preempting its usual quarterly update. "We are expecting manganese prices to be higher than the historical average for the... Full story
Increasing responsible sourcing demand puts a spotlight on mining sector. Artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) is a term that describes the subsistence mining sector, where locals work independently using low-tech methods of manual extraction, physical labor, and basic tools. Many rural communities are historically reliant on artisanal mining for their livelihoods. However, that same history also involves poor working conditions, human rights violations, predatory land...
A few investors have been buying up cobalt amid battery metal slump. While sustainable domestic mines like Jervois Idaho Cobalt Operations in the U.S. fight to stick to opening targets and investors struggle with problematic environmental and social costs of battery metals from overseas, a glut of overproduced cobalt has driven prices down, and savvy investors are buying up physical material for when demand surges or geopolitical issues come to a head. Anchorage Capital... Full story
Auto manufacturers take sides on the question facing the industry – are deep sea resources necessary to compete in the global EV race? A proposal to limit the use of minerals pulled from the seabed has been making its rounds in boardrooms from Tesla to GM, asking big names in the electric vehicle game to commit to a moratorium on minerals sourced from the deep sea. It lost in a landslide, with 78% of Tesla shareholders voting against the proposal and 6% in favor. While c... Full story
Returns to a Yukon property with the same advantageous nickel mineral as is found at its Baptiste project in B.C. FPX Nickel Corp.'s search for a unique mineral that offers a cleaner source of the nickel that is in high demand due to its use in lithium-ion batteries has led the company back to Canada's Yukon. FPX is best known for its work at Baptiste, an advance-staged exploration project in central British Columbia that shows the potential of being a significant future... Full story
Secures former critical minerals stockpile site to build graphite processing and battery materials recycling plant. Graphite One Inc. plans to transform a former national defense critical minerals stockpile site in Ohio into a domestic source of the graphite anode material going into the lithium-ion batteries powering electric vehicles and storing renewable energy. "Graphite One is delighted to announce that, subject to financing, we will be building our advanced graphite... Full story
International Battery Metals and US Magnesium agree to install world's first modular DLE plant. This May, International Battery Metals (IBAT) and US Magnesium announced their partnership to install a first-of-its-kind modular direct lithium extraction (DLE) plant that can rapidly be deployed to a site and efficiently extract lithium from a variety of brine resources. The portable, modular design provides both a smaller footprint and scalability. The mobile facility is...
Volfpack selects HydroGraph graphene for supercapacitors in its hybrid renewable energy storage systems. HydroGraph Clean Power Inc.'s flagship graphene product will soon be a key ingredient in Volfpack Energy Ltd.'s hybrid battery system, which was engineered to help store solar energy and stabilize power grids in Asia. Keeping power grids fed with stable solar is challenging. The best-known and most widely understood of these dilemmas is storing enough energy during the day... Full story
BLM completes draft EIS for Rhyolite Ridge, closing in on final federal permitting decision for energy transition metals mine. Marking a major milestone on the path toward a domestic supply of lithium for nearly 370,000 electric vehicles per year, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management has finalized a draft environmental impact statement (EIS) for developing a mine at Ioneer Ltd.'s Rhyolite Ridge lithium-boron project in Nevada. "This news sets a clear path forward to...
Long-term partnership will secure battery-grade lithium hydroxide for automaker and accelerate both companies' expansion into EV space. This week, Albemarle announced a long-term partnership with BMW to deliver battery-grade lithium hydroxide for the automaker's next generation of high-performance electric vehicles and to work together to develop technology for safer and more energy-dense batteries. "Albemarle is committed to building a more resilient world," said Albemarle...
Invests in Nouveau Monde Graphite and locks up 85% of the zero-carbon lithium-ion battery anode material to be made in Canada by NMG. General Motors and Panasonic Energy have entered into a deal with Canada-based Nouveau Monde Graphite (NMG) for a supply of low-carbon graphite anode material produced in North America for the lithium-ion batteries powering their electric vehicles. As part of a larger deal that spurred a total of $87.5 million in new investment and sent NMG...
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...
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...
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... Full story
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...
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...
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...
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... Full story
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...
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,...
