A Norwegian study has found a “substantial” amount metals and minerals ranging from copper to rare earth metals on the seabed of its extended continental shelf, authorities said on Friday in their first official estimates. The Nordic country, a major oil and gas exporter, is considering whether to open its offshore areas to deep-sea mining, […]
Battery Metals
US blocks mining in parts of Minnesota, dealing blow to Antofagasta’s Twin Metals copper project
The US Interior Department on Thursday blocked mining in part of northeast Minnesota for 20 years, the latest blow to Antofagasta Plc’s Twin Metals copper and nickel mining project but a step officials said is needed to protect the state’s vast network of interconnected waterways. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland signed an order on Thursday withdrawing […]
Senator Manchin aims to close battery loophole around the $7,500 EV tax credit
Senator Joe Manchin, chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, has introduced a new bill that squashes a small loophole around the Inflation Reduction Act’s (IRA) $7,500 EV tax credit. The new credits are restricted to cars with final assembly in the US, as well as those with a certain amount of North […]
Indonesia’s FDI jumps in 2022, led by mineral processing
Indonesia’s foreign direct investment surged 44.2% on a yearly basis in 2022, with the base metals sector drawing in the biggest inflows, the investment minister said on Tuesday, noting 2023 would be a more difficult year to attract investment. Southeast Asia’s largest economy received 654.4 trillion rupiah worth of FDI last year, or equivalent to […]
Scientists Have a Genius Plan: Turn Abandoned Mines Into Gravity Batteries
Supplying the world with renewable energy is a two-fold problem. The first is making technologies like wind and solar as robust and affordable as coal and natural gas. With recent estimates suggesting solar will outpace coal in 2025, that first problem is quickly being solved. The second one, figuring out how to store that energy, […]
GM and LG call off partnership for a fourth battery plant; GM seeks new partner
General Motors and LG Energy Solution have tentatively called off plans to build a fourth battery cell plant in the U.S. together as part of their joint venture Ultium Cells LLC after the two sides failed to reach an agreement on details for that fourth plant, a person familiar with the plans confirmed to the […]
Nornickel management proposes 76% dividend cut – sources cited by RBC
The management of Russian mining giant Nornickel has proposed slashing its annual dividend for 2022 to $1.5 billion from the $6.3 billion paid out for 2021, the economic news outlet RBC reported on Saturday, citing three sources close to the board of directors. Nornickel’s two main shareholders are Vladimir Potanin’s Interros holding company with 37% […]
American Lithium’s 51% stock bounce has CEO upbeat on year
American Lithium Corp.’s stock is experiencing a dramatic revival following its new US listing and a promise to update investors on its much anticipated Nevada project. Shares have surged 51% since the start of the year, topping peers including Lithium Americas Corp., Ioneer Ltd. and Piedmont Lithium Inc. even as prices for the silvery white […]
Congo president demands more from $6.2 billion China metals deal
Democratic Republic of Congo President Felix Tshisekedi criticized a $6.2 billion minerals-for-infrastructure contract with China, saying the world’s largest producer of a key battery metal hasn’t benefited from the deal. Congo, Africa’s second-largest nation by landmass, is flush with natural resources — including copper and cobalt that are major components in electric vehicles — but […]
BASF, Eramet to finalize $2.6bn partnership on Indonesia nickel smelter
Germany’s BASF and French mining firm Eramet are finalizing a $2.6 billion partnership deal to invest in a nickel smelting facility in Indonesia, Indonesia’s investment ministry said, citing the CEO of BASF. The project investment deal would be worth around 2.4 billion euros ($2.59 billion), the investment ministry said, citing BASF chief executive Martin Brudermüller. […]