The US Department of Energy (DOE) announced more than $3 billion for across 14 states to boost the domestic production of advanced batteries and battery materials nationwide. The portfolio of selected projects, once fully contracted, are projected to support more than 8,000 construction jobs and more than 4,000 operating jobs.... Read more →

General Motors and Hyundai Motor signed an agreement to explore future collaboration across key strategic areas. GM and Hyundai will look for ways to leverage their complementary scale and strengths to reduce costs and bring a wider range of vehicles and technologies to customers faster. Potential collaboration projects center on... Read more →

Chinese car manufacturers have been forced to accelerate plans and build local facilities to localize their supply chain in light of various EV tariffs announced this year, according to EV research-house, Rho Motion. This comes as Canada announces a 100% import tariff on Chinese EVs, in line with its trade... Read more →

The Michigan State University Industrial Training Assessment Center and University of Michigan Economic Growth Institute have been awarded $500,000 by the US Department of Energy to launch the Michigan Automotive Supply Chain Technical Assistance Program. This two-year initiative will help small and medium-sized manufacturers in Michigan’s automotive sector transition to... Read more →

The US Department of Energy (DOE) released a report that makes actionable recommendations to address five gaps in the domestic hydropower supply chain. Hydropower makes up about 27% of renewable electricity generation in the United States and is an important component of the nation’s goal of achieving a 100% clean... Read more →

Cumulative battery and EV supply chain investment in North America grew to more than $250 billion by the end of 2023, according to the US Department of Energy (DOE). Investment in battery and EV supply chains increased rapidly after the passage of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) on 15 November... Read more →

The Global Battery Alliance, the largest multistakeholder organization in the energy storage space, bringing together over 160 members across the battery value chain and the wider ecosystem including public organizations, NGOs, labor unions and academia, launched the second wave of its Battery Passport pilots including 11 pilot consortia. Building on... Read more →

McKinsey estimates that Europe and North America will each account for 20% of global battery cell production by 2030. However, both regions combined are forecast to hold anywhere from 5 to 10% of global cell component capacity, lagging further behind incumbents in Asia—specifically in separator and electrolyte components. As a... Read more →

The US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains (MESC) released a Request for Information (RFI) on clean energy supply chain data and analysis methods. This RFI is an opportunity for industry and other stakeholders to highlight specific supply chain gaps, vulnerabilities, and/or challenges impacting various... Read more →

The BMW Group showcased current fields of application for the Catena-X data ecosystem (earlier post) at the Hannover Messe. Working together with partners and suppliers, the company has modeled a complete data chain for the first time using real-world CO2 data from the manufacture of the iconic kidney grille on... Read more →

Researchers from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), in collaboration with industry partners, have demonstrated the potential for a zero-tailpipe emissions supply chain that transports goods from the nation’s busiest ports to their final destinations without producing vehicle emissions using today’s technology. NREL analysis formed the backbone of the Port... Read more →

BASF has broken ground on a methyl glycols (MG) plant at its Verbund site in Zhanjiang, China. The new facility is designed with an annual capacity of 46,000 metric tons and aims to meet the rapidly growing demand for brake fluids in the region. The plant is scheduled to commence... Read more →

Solvay and Carester signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to form a strategic partnership aimed at leveraging the expertise of both companies to pursue manufacturing opportunities within the rare earth industry for the permanent magnets value chain in Europe. The collaboration will enable both companies to enhance their respective strengths... Read more →

Actors in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, especially Saudi Arabia and Morocco, are gaining a strategic foothold in the lithium ion battery supply chain, according to Benchamrk Mineral Intelligence. Through various policy approaches utilising state support and industrial policy and taking advantage of geopolitical trends, these countries... Read more →

Electra Battery Materials Corporation received a $5-million investment from the Government of Canada towards the construction of North America’s first cobalt sulfate refinery. Located in Temiskaming Shores, Ontario, the facility will produce approximately five percent of the global supply of battery grade cobalt needed for electric vehicles. The investment will... Read more →

Specialty chemicals company LANXESS and battery materials manufacturer IBU-tec advanced materials have entered into a research cooperation to develop innovative iron oxides for the production of cathode material for LFP batteries and thus increase the performance of this battery type. The companies aim to optimize the electrochemical properties of LFP... Read more →

Altilium, a UK-based clean technology group, has secured more than £700,000 (US$889,000) in UK government innovation funding for two collaborative research projects focused on the recovery of copper and Rare Earth Elements (REE) from mine waste. Building on its work to recover lithium and other critical battery materials from end-of-life... Read more →

The BMW Group is accelerating its ramp-up of e-mobility and increasingly relying on regional supply chains, in line with the principle “local for local”. The company aims to source components such as battery cells close to vehicle production and gradually localise the supply chain for primary materials. Belgium-based Umicore has... Read more →

Li-ion battery recycler Aqua Metals and battery materials company 6K Energy plan to create a sustainable circular supply chain in the United States for the critical minerals essential to domestic lithium battery manufacturing. Aqua Metals and 6K Energy have signed a multi-part memorandum of understanding (MOU) covering the scope of... Read more →

Verkor, which in April entered a long-term commercial partnership with Renault to supply the equivalent of 12 GWh of batteries each year (earlier post), recently secured more than €2 billion in financing following the signing of a minimum of €850-million Series C funding, approval of European Investment Bank (EIB) for... Read more →

Almost 50 countries from continents across the world—including large and emerging critical mineral producers and consumers—convened with leaders from industry, investment and civil society at the first IEA Critical Minerals and Clean Energy Summit to share experiences and discuss effective courses of action on critical minerals to ensure rapid and... Read more →

INVISTA, an industry leader in the nylon 6,6 value chain, is licensing its nitrous oxide (N2O) abatement technology at three adipic acid production facilities in China; those licenses will help companies in the automotive industry achieve material supply chain emissions reductions. INVISTA—which produces its own adipic acid, along with a... Read more →

Li-Cycle Holdings and Glencore International, a leading producer, recycler, and marketer of nickel and cobalt which is required for the production of lithium-ion batteries, are now planning a two-phase approach to the Portovesme Hub project in Sardinia, Italy (earlier post) to expedite the production of battery-grade lithium carbonate. Phase 1... Read more →

OCSiAl, a leader in graphene nanotube technologies (earlier post), has been granted a construction permit for a nanotube production facility near Belgrade, Serbia. (Earlier post.) The new nanotube synthesis plant will be launched in 2024 and will have a planned annual capacity of 120 tonnes per year. The project will... Read more →

BASF and Nanotech Energy, a developer and manufacturer of graphene-based energy storage products, have agreed to partner to reduce the CO2 footprint of Nanotech’s lithium-ion batteries for the North American market. The agreement aims to close the loop for lithium-ion batteries in North America, with BASF producing cathode active materials... Read more →

The Nikkei reports that Japan and the UK are set to make joint investments in critical minerals in Africa and other places. The two countries will also establish a framework for discussing economic security at the ministerial level, with a focus on supply chains. The two countries reportedly aim to... Read more →

The US Department of Energy (DOE) announced a $15.5-billion package of funding and loans primarily focused on retooling existing factories for the transition to electric vehicles (EVs). This includes making available $2 billion in grants and up to $10 billion in loans to support automotive manufacturing conversion projects that retain... Read more →

An analysis by Nikkei in Japan concludes that nearly 40% of the suppliers for materials used in Tesla’s electric vehicle batteries are Chinese companies. Nikkei sent a letter to Tesla asking about its dependence on Chinese suppliers but said that it had received no reply by the publication deadline. China... Read more →

The US Department of Energy (DOE) released its 2023 Critical Materials Assessment (2023 CMA), which evaluated materials for their criticality to global clean energy technology supply chains. Based on the results of the Assessment, DOE has determined the 2023 DOE Critical Materials List of energy-specific critical and near-critical materials through... Read more →

Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Corporation introduced the AI-enabled, blockchain-based Supplier CO2 Emission Monitoring System (SCEMS) to manage the carbon emissions of its cooperative business partners. SCEMS is designed to compute carbon emissions at every stage of a cooperative partner’s supply chain while assuring data transparency and integrity. Hyundai Motor... Read more →

Nikola Corporation and BayoTech, Inc., an innovator in hydrogen production, transportation and storage solutions, announced an agreement to advance reliable hydrogen supply for zero-emission commercial fuel cell electric vehicle fleets. The strategic supply agreement includes the purchase of up to 50 Nikola Class 8 hydrogen fuel cell electric trucks, up... Read more →

The energy transition requires a massive increase in the supply of critical materials, yet supply chains remain vulnerable to a range of geopolitical risks. Although there is no scarcity of reserves for these energy transition minerals, global capabilities for mining and refining them are limited. Supply disruptions could impact the... Read more →

Stellantis N.V. and NioCorp Developments Ltd. have signed a rare earth offtake term sheet. The objective is to enter into a definitive rare earth supply agreement to support Stellantis’ commitment to build resilient supply chains and reach carbon net zero by 2038 and to help accelerate NioCorp’s path to commercial... Read more →

BASF has opened Europe’s first co-located center of battery material production and battery recycling in Schwarzheide, Germany. The inauguration of a production facility for high-performance cathode active materials (CAM) and the unveiling ceremony for a battery recycling plant for the production of black mass represent steps toward closing the loop... Read more →

General Motors and Australia-based Element 25 Limited announced an agreement for Element 25 to supply up to 32,500 metric tons of manganese sulfate (MnSO4) annually to support the annual production of more than 1 million GM EVs in North America. Under the agreement, GM will provide Element 25 with a... Read more →

Saudi Arabia has cut a number of deals recently that coud make the country’s lithiu-ion supply chain the most developed in the Middle East, according to an analysis by Benchmark Mineral Intelligence. Saudi Arabia’s ambitions for an EV supply chain are part of the diversification of the national economy away... Read more →

Mercedes-Benz has signed a supply agreement with Swedish start-up H2 Green Steel (H2GS) (earlier post) over approximately 50,000 tonnes almost CO₂-free steel per year for its European press shops and deepened its partnership through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the aim to establish a sustainable steel supply chain in... Read more →

A group of industrial stakeholders, including the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, have sent President Biden a letter urging “your administration to make it clear that electrical steel is critical to the national and economic security of the United States and to prioritize actions that will create a sustainable supply.” Electrical... Read more →

The global professional services firm KPMG and Circulor, a leading supply chain traceability solution, announced a new alliance to offer a complete package that enables customers to trace, monitor and control critical raw materials throughout their battery and other industrial value chains, from extraction to the end of a product’s... Read more →

BASF Environmental Catalyst and Metal Solutions, a global leader in precious metals and catalysis, and Advent Technologies Holdings, a developer and manufacturer of hydrogen fuel cell systems, have concluded the terms of a new agreement to join efforts in building a full-loop component supply chain for fuel cells and to... Read more →

SK On, a leading electric vehicle (EV) battery manufacturer, signed a joint development agreement (JDA) with US graphite company Westwater Resources (WWR) as part of efforts to strengthen its battery raw material supply chain in North America following the enactment of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Under the agreement, the... Read more →

One of the challenges of constructing a global hydrogen economy is hydrogen transportation by sea. A new approach developed by researchers from the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) in Austria and international colleagues proposes using solid air (nitrogen or oxygen) as a medium for recycling cooling energy across... Read more →

GTT, TotalEnergies, LMG Marin and Bureau Veritas have signed an agreement for a Joint Development Project (JDP) to develop a 150,000 m3 capacity liquid hydrogen (LH2) carrier concept design fitted with GTT’s membrane-type containment system. Low-carbon hydrogen offers a promising solution to decarbonize hard-to-electrify industries as well as heavy-duty terrestrial... Read more →

Porsche AG and Norsk Hydro ASA will work together to further reduce the carbon footprint of Porsche’s car models by using low-carbon aluminum and extrusions from Hydro. In addition, the two companies will collaborate on an innovative value chain concept for battery materials and its recycling. Hydro will deliver to... Read more →

Arnold Magnetic Technologies, a subsidiary of Compass Diversified and global manufacturer of high-performance magnets and more for mission critical applications, is partnering with Cyclic Materials, a pioneer in developing more sustainable domestic supply chains for rare earth elements. Arnold and Cyclic will work together to develop a rare earth recycling... Read more →

PT Vale Indonesia Tbk and China’s Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt Co. announced an agreement with Ford Motor Co., creating a three-party collaboration to advance more sustainable nickel production in Indonesia and help make electric vehicle batteries more affordable. All three companies are making equity investments in the Pomalaa Block High-Pressure Acid... Read more →

FREYR Battery has entered into discussions on a potential strategic coalition with Glencore, Caterpillar, Siemens and Nidec to pursue the scale-up of sustainable battery solutions across Europe, North America, and beyond. The non-binding alliance may establish guiding principles including: A shared vision of battery technology as critical to the energy... Read more →

Supply chain disruption and rising material costs are causing the global automotive industry to re-evaluate lean manufacturing principles, according to a new survey commissioned by ABB Robotics. Shifting from ‘just-in-time’ to ‘just in case’ strategies, manufacturers are holding more stock to protect against unplanned disruptions. Produced in partnership with Automotive... Read more →

The European Commission (EC) unveiled two draft laws in response to the US subsidies that the Commission fears are luring European clean-tech companies to North America. The European Critical Raw Materials Act would help the bloc secure supply of the metals needed to build batteries, wind turbines and other green... Read more →

The SAFE Center for Strategic Industrial Materials (C-SIM) released the first report in a series of policy papers regarding the various issues impacting domestic primary aluminum production: The US Aluminum Industry’s Energy Problem and Energy Solution. Aluminum demand will continue to grow as the economy transitions to a more sustainable... Read more →