Ford cancels eSUV, delays electric truck

Spanish Market: Battery materials
21/08/24

US automaker Ford Motor updated its electric vehicle (EV) strategy, canceling its planned three-row electric SUV and delaying the production of a next-generation all-electric pickup truck until 2027.

The three-row SUV had already been delayed to 2027, but with its cancellation, Ford will now pivot to producing new gas and hybrid-powered three-row SUVs, the company said today.

This decision could potentially cost the company $1.5bn in expenses, including a special non-cash charge of $400mn. The automaker will reduce its EV spending from 40pc to 30pc of its annual capital expenditures.

The next-generation electric truck, known as Project T3, will be delayed, with production now scheduled for the second half of 2027 instead of 2025. Despite the 18-month delay, Ford's Tennessee EV facility will still assemble the vehicle.

Ford will also prioritize a new commercial EV van that will begin production at its Ohio plant in 2026. Additionally, the company is working on a more affordable EV in one of its skunkworks labs in Irvine, California. This project will produce a medium-sized pickup truck.

These shifts come after slower than expected EV adoption and difficulties in making EVs profitable. Ford reported significant costs related to ramping up EV production as industry sales growth slows. Ford disclosed that it expects its EV business to lose between $5bn-5.5bn for the year.

By Jasmine Palacios

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29/08/24

Australia's MinRes pulls back Li output with downturn

Singapore, 29 August (Argus) — Australian lithium and iron ore producer Mineral Resources (MinRes) will pull back on lithium production at its Mount Marion and Wodgina sites with the current downturn. "I'm starving the product going in[to] the market," said MinRes managing director Chris Ellison on 29 August. "I don't want to oversupply the market. I don't want to waste my ore." MinRes issued its July 2024-June 2025 fiscal year lithium shipment guidance on 6pc-grade spodumene grade basis for Mount Marion at 150,000-170,000 dry metric tonnes (dmt), down from the previous year's 190,000-220,000dmt, according to its latest full-year results presentation. Wodgina's guidance was 210,000-230,000dmt, down from the previous year's 210,000-240,000dmt. Its newer Bald Hill site, which was not issued a guidance, aims to ship 120,000-145,000dmt. "We've got used to higher prices. We've put a lot more gear in there and got greedier and tried to get more product. We're paying attention to that," said Ellison. But MinRes has no plans to shut the mines down. But it will spend "as little" as it can on the mines while conserving cash. MinRes' revenues for 2023-24 rose by 10pc against a year earlier to around A$5.3bn ($3.6bn), partly supported by higher iron ore revenues but offset by the weaker lithium prices. "We're in a tough market. We're in one of those downturns [but] it's nothing we need to panic about," added Ellison. He forecast lithium prices to likely remain depressed for "six months or so" before rebounding early next year. But has warned that if it does not, plenty of lithium operations are going to be "turned off". Argus-assessed prices for 6pc grade lithium concentrate (spodumene) held stable from a week earlier at $770-840/t cif China on 27 August, while prices for 99.5pc grade lithium carbonate ex-works China hit their lowest level since early 2021 and are currently at Yn73,000-78,000/t ex-works. MinRes will also not delve into downstream processing of lithium in his times, stressed Ellison in a sharp contrast with its rival Pilbara Minerals , stating those yield "marginal returns". MinRes earlier in June ended a transitional third-party processing agreement with US-based lithium producer Albemarle for the conversion of its Wodgina spodumene into lithium hydroxide. By Joseph Ho Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Batteries, oil reserves top Korea’s trade budget focus

28/08/24

Batteries, oil reserves top Korea’s trade budget focus

Singapore, 28 August (Argus) — South Korea's trade, industry and energy ministry (Motie) today announced its 2025 budget proposal, which has a focus on fostering high-tech industries such as batteries and semiconductors, and bolstering oil reserves. Other key areas include ensuring reserves of key metals, as well as expanding low-carbon energy. Motie's proposed 2025 budget totals W11.5 trillion ($8.6bn), up by 0.2pc or W21.8bn from the previous year. The budget proposal will be submitted to the National Assembly in early September for approval and will be confirmed in December. High-tech industries Motie will expand funding for developing high-tech strategic industries such as semiconductors and secondary batteries by 17pc to W2.09 trillion in 2025. The ministry will extend support totalling W31.2bn to further develop battery management system technology and infrastructure to assess the safety of electric vehicle (EV) batteries, with the ministry citing recent heightened safety concerns following multiple fires involving EVs. The incidents had prompted domestic EV manufacturers to disclose otherwise confidential battery information. Resource security Motie will raise funding to boost economic security by 1.4pc to W1.85 trillion in 2025, which includes developing resources, as well as bolstering stockpiles of oil and key minerals. Of the W1.85 trillion, investment in developing oil fields will rise by 5.2pc to W50.6bn. This includes funds to support the first exploration drilling in the deep-sea gas field in the east sea , with results expected by the first half of 2025. The country plans to invest W79.9bn in 2025, up by 20pc from 2024, in oil storage, and to expand oil reserves to over 100mn bl. Stockpiling of key minerals such as lithium, cobalt and rare earth elements will continue, but the South Korean government is shifting its focus to building and maintaining stockpile infrastructure given stable mineral prices. Its budget for key minerals stockpiling will be lowered by 58pc from this year's W233.1bn to W96.9bn for 2025, but the allocated budget for construction and maintenance will surge by over sixfold to W116.3bn from this year's W18.7bn. The country will also support concluding supply deals for urea and further develop technology to cut import dependence. Low-carbon energy Motie's "carbon-free" energy budget is largely focused on developing the nuclear power industry as a key export driver, with W11.6bn allocated. The Czech government in July selected Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power (KHNP) as the preferred bidder for the installation of two nuclear reactors at the site of its 2GW Dukovany power plant, although US nuclear developer Westinghouse and French utility EdF are challenging the tender results . The government is also extending W198.4bn in funds to expand renewable energy supply. Of this, W42bn will be allocated to support low-carbon energy projects, which Motie expects to attract funding of up to W525bn in the renewable energy market. By Tng Yong Li and Joseph Ho Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Mine developer signs new deal for potential refinery

22/08/24

Mine developer signs new deal for potential refinery

Houston, 22 August (Argus) — Canada-based mine developer Fortune Minerals entered into a new option agreement with JFSL Field Services to purchase a brownfield industrial site to build a refinery that would turn out cobalt, bismuth and copper products. Fortune can acquire the property in Alberta's Lamont County by paying C$6mn ($4.4mn) before November 2025, the company said this week. It must make monthly payments of C$100,000 that will go toward the purchase price, as a condition of the deal. Fortune has paid JFSL a little more than C$1.4mn for the site so far, and that total will be deducted from the overall purchase price as well. The two had entered into a previous option agreement that expired in July after being extended more than once. JFSL will be allowed to market the site to other prospective buyers during the option period, but Fortune will have a 90-day right of first refusal to match any offer. Additionally, JFSL has the right to continue using the property and its existing facilities for 18 months following a sale to Fortune. Fortune touts that the 77-acre property, which previously contained a steel fabrication plant, is near rail lines, reagents key to the potential refinery's function and skilled labor from the existing petrochemicals industry in the area. Fortune expects to refine concentrates from its NICO critical minerals project in the Northwest Territories into 8,780 metric tonnes/yr of cobalt sulphate, 1,700 t/yr of bismuth ingots and 300 t/yr of copper in cement precipitate. Fortune also has a collaboration in place to potentially extract cobalt and bismuth from waste streams from mining conglomerate Rio Tinto's smelter in Utah that pulls ore from its Kennecott copper mine. Development of the mine, which is anticipated to utilize open-pit and underground mining methods, has yet to begin with Fortune awaiting a final project construction decision. Fortune received federal funding from both the Canadian and US governments to complete a new feasibility study and other work that is needed before that determination can be made. That process is expected to take 20 months. Fortune also still needs to line up construction financing for the mine and refinery, which are estimated to cost C$770mn. It predicts establishing the mine would take two years, while the refinery would take 18 months. By Alex Nicoll Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Sibanye scraps supply deal at Sandouville Ni refinery

22/08/24

Sibanye scraps supply deal at Sandouville Ni refinery

London, 22 August (Argus) — South African multi-metals mining group Sibanye-Stillwater announced yesterday that it is scrapping a key supply agreement for its Sandouville nickel refinery in France as it repurposes the plant to produce precursor cathode active material (pCAM) for the European battery market. The termination will be completed on or before 31 December, the group said. Sibanye-Stillwater expects to incur costs of $37mn from the termination, with refining from inventory and sales expected to continue until the first quarter of 2025. The refinery, acquired from Eramet in 2022, will shift from producing nickel sulphate to producing pCAM after a scoping study yielded positive results. A final decision on pCAM production depends on a feasibility study now in progress. The pivot, called the GalliCam project, aims to use mixed hydroxide precipitate (MHP) instead of the nickel matte now in use. Sibanye intends to use MHP in a chloride medium, which it said would lead to fewer production steps, lower energy consumption, reduced carbon emissions, and fewer waste products. It filed a patent application for this chloride-MHP process in July. A small-scale pCAM precipitation pilot is under way at Sandouville, the group said, with testing due to begin from the end of the third quarter. By Raghav Jain Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

SQM 2Q lithium sales up 21pc despite low prices

21/08/24

SQM 2Q lithium sales up 21pc despite low prices

London, 21 August (Argus) — Chilean lithium producer SQM posted a 21pc increase in lithium sales volumes in the second quarter despite low prices hitting profits across the industry. The world's second-largest producer reported sales of 52,300t in the recent quarter, up from 43,100t on the year earlier. Sales from January-June rose by 27pc to 95,700t. The firm also signed an agreement with state-owned miner Codelco in May to extend operations in the lithium-rich Salar de Atacama until 2060. The partnership will take effect next year. Argus -assessed prices for lithium carbonate 99.5pc cif China averaged $12.96/kg across April-June, down 57pc on the year (see graph) . And revenues fell by 55pc to $665,000 in the same period despite record sales volumes for the quarter. "We see this pricing trend continuing in the second half of this year, with current lithium price indices in China nearly 20pc lower than the average lithium price indices in the second quarter of 2024," said chief executive Ricardo Ramos. "Given current price levels, we anticipate some lithium producers may reduce their output, as many projects, especially greenfield, are not economically viable at these prices. In our situation, while we continue to advance our previously announced expansions, we are currently re-evaluating specific markets and initiatives that may be less attractive in the near-term under these conditions." The firm expects capacity additions in Western Australia and the Salar de Atacama, and has kept guidance for the year of 210,000t in line with projections set in May, with sales volumes in the second half of the year similar to those in January-June. By Chris Welch Lithium carbonate min 99.5pc cif China $/kg Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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