In December 2024, Mali launched the Goulamina lithium mine, located in the Bougouni region, marking the country’s entry as a major producer of lithium. Benchmark recently projected that Mali is set to become the second largest lithium miner in Africa this year behind Zimbabwe. Accoding to Benchmark’s Lithium Forecast, in... Read more →

Although oversupply and low prices have dominated discussions around battery raw material markets this year, significant deficits are forecast in the next ten years, according to Benchmark. The forecast deficits are substantially higher than the current surpluses. In 2034, the lithium and nickel markets are expected to be in deficits... Read more →

Canda-based Foran Mining Corporation (Foran) has been conditionally approved for an investment of up to $20 million through Canda’s Critical Minerals Infrastructure Fund (CMIF), a key program under the Canadian Critical Minerals Strategy. The funding will enable the construction of a hydro transmission line to connect to clean hydroelectricity, an... Read more →

BMW i Ventures invested in Phoenix Tailings, a metals production company dedicated to creating a zero-waste, zero-emission future. The Series B financing, which was led by Envisioning Partners and included additional participation from Yamaha Motor Ventures and Escape Velocity, will enable Phoenix Tailings to scale its rare earth processing operations... Read more →

As part of a research and development program, Rio Tinto is assessing the potential for extracting and valorizing gallium, a critical and strategic mineral already present in the bauxite processed in its alumina refinery in Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean, the only one in Canada. When the preliminary phase of technology development is conclusive,... Read more →

Rio Tinto has approved $2.5 billion to expand the Rincon project in Argentina, the company’s first commercial-scale lithium operation, demonstrating its commitment to building a world-class battery materials portfolio. Rincon’s capacity of 60,000 tonnes of battery-grade lithium carbonate per year comprises the 3,000-tonne starter plant and 57,000-tonne expansion plant. Rincon’s... Read more →

The rare earths supply chain is poised for greater geographical diversification as new mines and processing plants outside of China are brought into production throughout the second half of the decade, as part of on-going derisking efforts by Western governments. According to the Benchmark Rare Earths Forecast, the supply of... Read more →

Rio Tinto and Sumitomo Metal Mining (SMM) have signed a term sheet for a joint venture to deliver the Winu copper-gold project, located in the Great Sandy Desert region of Western Australia. Under the Term Sheet, which includes exclusivity obligations to work towards a binding definitive agreement, Rio Tinto will... Read more →

The global transition to clean energy is gaining momentum, heavily relying on renewable technologies such as solar PV cells and wind turbines, alongside energy transition solutions like hydrogen, energy storage, and carbon capture. This shift has triggered an unprecedented surge in demand for critical minerals, posing significant challenges in achieving... Read more →

Piedmont Lithium, a North American supplier of lithium products, and Sayona Mining signed a definitive agreement to combine the two companies to create a leading lithium business, resulting in Sayona being the ultimate parent entity. The transaction will result in an approximate 50% / 50% equity holding of shareholders of... Read more →

US Congressman Juan Ciscomani (AZ-06) celebrated the bipartisan House passage of his legislation to ensure parity between Critical Materials, as defined by the Department of Energy (DOE), and Critical Minerals, as defined by the US Geological Survey (USGS) to eliminate confusion, confer the same benefits to both lists moving forward,... Read more →

Rio Tinto has approved construction of a new 25-megawatt solar plant at its Kennecott copper operation in Utah, bringing the mine’s total solar capacity to 30MW. The new solar plant will be located next to Kennecott’s existing 5MW solar plant, which was completed in 2023. Together, the two solar plants... Read more →

Rio Tinto will partner with China’s State Power Investment Corporation (SPIC) to demonstrate battery-swap electric haul-truck technology at the Oyu Tolgoi copper mine in Mongolia. Battery swapping technology allows a battery electric vehicle to exchange a discharged battery pack quickly for a fully charged one, instead of recharging the vehicle... Read more →

Despite the growth in metals supply over the last decade, BloombergNEF’s (BNEF’s) annual Transition Metals Outlook finds that there are still not enough raw materials to meet growing demand. This supply squeeze could slow the adoption of clean energy technologies. In order to meet the demands of a net-zero emissions... Read more →

Newmont Corporation commissioned its first battery-electric large mining truck at the Cripple Creek and Victor (CC&V) mine in Teller County, Colorado. The vehicle, dubbed the Early Learner Cat 793 XE, is an important milestone for Newmont, made possible through its strategic alliance with Caterpillar Inc. Currently, surface and underground mining... Read more →

Rio Tinto has completed the transition from conventional to renewable diesel for all heavy mining equipment at its Kennecott copper mine in Utah, giving the mine one of the lowest carbon footprints of any copper producer in the United States. Kennecott’s fleet of 97 haul trucks and heavy machinery equipment... Read more →

Ioneer Ltd received its federal permit for the Rhyolite Ridge Lithium-Boron Project from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). With the positive decision, Rhyolite Ridge becomes the first US lithium project approved by the Biden Administration as part of its efforts to accelerate domestic critical mineral production and advances the... Read more →

Lithium Americas Corp., the Canada-based developer of the Thacker Pass lithium mining project in northern Nevada, and General Motors Holdings LLC entered into a new investment agreement to establish a joint venture for the purpose of funding, developing, constructing and operating Thacker Pass. The JV Transaction will deliver $625 million... Read more →

Rio Tinto and Arcadium Lithium announced a definitive agreement under which Rio Tinto will acquire Arcadium in an all-cash transaction for US$5.85 per share. (Earlier post.) The transaction represents a premium of 90% to Arcadium’s closing price of $3.08 per share on 4 October 2024, a premium of 39% to... Read more →

Rio Tinto confirmed that it has made an approach to Arcadium Lithium—a newly formed company from the merger of Allkem and Livent—regarding a potential acquisition of Arcadium Lithium by Rio Tinto. The approach is non-binding and there is no certainty that any transaction will be agreed to or will proceed.... Read more →

Scania, and Australian company Fortescue, have agreed to develop and validate jointly a fully integrated autonomous road train solution. The global mining industry is transforming, and autonomous solutions are receiving more attention. The autonomous solution will be developed, tested and validated in partnership at Fortescue’s iron ore operations in Christmas... Read more →

Rio Tinto will develop Pongamia seed farms in Australia as part of a new biofuels pilot. The project will explore the potential of Pongamia seed oil as a feedstock for renewable diesel. The pilot aims to determine if Pongamia seed oil can contribute to Rio Tinto’s renewable diesel needs while... Read more →

Research by AI-powered supply chain risk platform Infyos has identified that companies accounting for 75% of the global battery market have connections to one or more companies in the supply chain facing allegations of severe human rights abuses. Most major battery manufacturers and end batteries applications are exposed including many... Read more →

Spodumene prices fell to their lowest levels since August 2021 in early September, trailing the steep drop in prices of lithium chemicals in recent months, according to Benchmark. Spodumene FOB Australia prices have fallen 14.4% so far this year to $818 per tonne in the assessment period ending 4 September,... Read more →

SLB announced that it has proven its solution for sustainable lithium production at scale at its demonstration plant in Clayton Valley, Nevada. The proprietary integrated solution combines SLB’s subsurface expertise with surface engineering of advanced technologies that include direct lithium extraction (DLE). It produces lithium 500 times faster than conventional... Read more →

TMC the metals company Inc., an explorer of the undersea resources of critical battery metals, successfully produced high temperature material (calcine) during the first phase of a commercial-scale campaign to process a 2,000-tonne sample of deep-seafloor polymetallic nodules at its partner PAMCO’s Hachinohe Rotary Kiln Electric-Arc Furnace facility in Hachinohe,... Read more →

Tanzanian graphite developer Black Rock Mining signed several binding agreements with its strategic alliance partner, POSCO International Corporation (POSCO), in relation to POSCO investing US$40 million in Black Rock. In exchange, Faru Graphite Corporation Limited (Faru) (the 84% subsidiary of Black Rock and owner of the Mahenge Graphite Project will... Read more →

Arcadium Lithium will suspend Stage 4A waste stripping, and any expansionary investment beyond Stage 3, at its Mt Cattlin spodumene operation in Western Australia given the continued decline in spodumene prices. Benchmark reported that spodumene prices fell to their lowest levels since August 2021 in early September, trailing the steep... Read more →

Sibanye-Stillwater executed a €500-million green loan financing facility (Green loan) for its Keliber lithium project in Finland, through its subsidiary Keliber Technology Oy. The Green loan secures the final capital expenditure funding required for the construction and development of its lithium mining, processing and refining facilities in Kaustinen, Kronoby and... Read more →

Nippon Steel has entered into an equity participation agreement with Whitehaven Coal Limited (WHC) to acquire a 20% interest in the Blackwater coal mine (BW Coal Mine) in the State of Queensland, Australia for $720 million. In addition, Nippon Steel has entered into long-term coal offtake rights agreement with WHC,... Read more →

A broad international consortium has developed the first handbook for Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) disclosure in relation to marine minerals. The purpose of the guidance document is to enable transparent and consistent reporting of material ESG topics of marine mineral projects in the context of global standards. Marine minerals... Read more →

The Nikkei reports that the Mes Aynak copper-mining project in Afghanistan is being restarted by the Taliban and its Chinese partner after a delay of more than 16 years. Aynak is the largest known copper deposit in Afghanistan, with indicated resources of 240 Mt grading 2.3% Cu placing it in... Read more →

Fortescue has started works at its Green Metal Project in the Pilbara region of Western Australia (WA). Located at the Green Energy Hub at Christmas Creek, the US$50-million project is expected to produce more than 1,500 tonnes per annum of green metal, with first production anticipated in 2025. The plant... Read more →

Fabrum, a New Zealand company, has collaborated on the design, build and commissioning of Australia’s largest liquid hydrogen plant at a mine site with and for Fortescue, a global green technology, energy and metals company headquartered in Western Australia. The liquid hydrogen plant at Christmas Creek comprises a hydrogen liquefaction... Read more →

Tirupati Graphite has begun production at its Vatomina mine in Madagascar. (Earlier post.) Steady state 24/7 production has been ongoing since 6 August 2024, with production of 165 tons in seven (7) consecutive working days. With the 330 days per annum operational design, this run rate equates to 7,778 tons... Read more →

Century Lithium reported the successful addition of a lithium carbonate stage at its Lithium Extraction Facility (Pilot Plant) in Amargosa Valley, Nevada, which is part of the company’s 100%-owned Angel Island Mine. Prior to this addition, concentrated lithium solutions from the Pilot Plant were treated by Saltworks Inc. at its... Read more →

BHP and Lundin Mining Corporation agreed to acquire jointly 100% of Filo Corp. which owns 100% of the Filo del Sol (FDS) copper project. BHP and Lundin Mining have also agreed to form a 50/50 joint venture to hold the FDS and Josemaria projects (Joint Venture) located in the Vicuña... Read more →

Wabtec Corporation announced an order for Evolution Series ES43ACmi locomotives from SimFer, a joint venture among the Government of the Republic of Guinea, Rio Tinto, and Chalco Iron Ore Holdings (CIOH). The order, valued at $277 million, will provide a locomotive fleet to service the rail operations for the Simandou... Read more →

A team at Arizona State University (ASU) has estimated the future amount of copper needed for clean energy transition (CET)-related technologies, focusing on the US market and the leading role of Arizona (AZ) in copper mining. Particularly, they evaluated hydrogen’s potential to displace diesel in haulage; for use in high-grade... Read more →

The EU and the Republic of Serbia signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) launching a strategic partnership on sustainable raw materials, battery value chains and electric vehicles. The partnership builds on the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) entered into force on 1 September 2013 and is in line with EU’s... Read more →

Rio Tinto marked the shipment of 4 billion tonnes of iron ore from the Pilbara in Western Australia to China. The shipment was loaded at Dampier Port on 19 July, bound for China Baowu Steel Group, the world’s top steel producer. This milestone comes 51 years after the first shipment... Read more →

Canada recently added an additional three minerals—high-purity iron, phosphorous and silicon metal—to its Critical Minerals List, bringing the total to 34. Canada released its first Critical Minerals List in March 2021 with a commitment to review the minerals identified as critical every three years. The list guides federal policy and... Read more →

USGS scientists have developed a new scientific mechanism for assessing the potential risk to worldwide mineral commodity supplies from seismic activity. The methodology was developed through studying copper and rhenium but provides a framework for future studies assessing many other mineral commodities around the globe. Earthquakes have the potential to... Read more →

BASF has signed an agreement with Solenis, a global producer of specialty chemicals headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware, to sell BASF’s flocculants business for mining applications. Mining flocculants help to aggregate fine particles in water and enhance the settling of solids. Flocculants can work by charge neutralization or by physically binding... Read more →

Eramet recently inaugurated the Centenario Phase 1 lithium carbonate production plant in Argentina. This flagship is operated by Eramine, a joint venture owned by Eramet (50.1%) and its partner Tsingshan (49.9%). The plant is designed to extract lithium from the salar brine and process it into battery-grade lithium carbonate. The... Read more →

Aclara Resources signed a Memorandum of Understanding with VACUUMSCHMELZE GmbH & Co. KG (VAC), which establishes a non-binding, non-exclusive, preliminary agreement, to approach potential clients jointly as a “mine-to-magnets” solution for ESG-compliant permanent magnets. Aclara is a development-stage company that is focused on heavy rare earth mineral resources hosted in... Read more →

Pilbara Minerals recently released the outcomes of a pre-feasibility study (PFS) which determined that production capacity at the company’s 100% owned Pilgangoora Operation could be expanded to more than 2.0 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa). The Pilgangoora ore body is one of the largest hard-rock lithium deposits in the world... Read more →

Marine polymetallic nodules, also known as manganese (Mn) nodules, have attracted the interest of mining companies for decades due to their enrichment of metals such as cobalt (Co), nickel (Ni), copper (Cu), and rare earth elements (REEs). These nodules, which accumulate minerals layer by layer over millions of years, are... Read more →

Africa is set to become a major new rare earths ore exporter to Chinese and Western processors, with eight pipeline projects due to go into production across the continent by 2029, according to Benchmark’s analysis. Rare earth’s biggest end use are rare earth permanent magnets (REPMs) for wind turbines and... Read more →

Chilean Cobalt recently received a non-binding Letter of Interest (LOI) from the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM Bank) for a potential debt funding package of up to $317,400,000 with loan tenor of up to 15 years to fund development efforts within C3’s mining concessions that comprise the La... Read more →