THE
LITHIUM GAP
STRATEGY
North America’s battery manufacturing industry will increase ten-fold in the next decade. At the same time, new government regulations mean that these battery manufacturers are facing a significant shortage of the locally produced Lithium chemicals because of limited refining facilities available to turn raw lithium into battery-grade material.
As a result, Lithium Universe has a significant opportunity to develop a vertically integrated mine-to-battery-grade lithium strategy in Canada that addresses the problem we call…
...the Lithium Conversion Gap.
Upstream | Mine Supply
For the first time Canada has surpassed China to claim the top spot in BloombergNEF’s Global Lithium-lon Battery Supply Chain Ranking, signalling its emergence as a significant global supplier of battery materials.
The James Bay region in Québec, where LU7’s flagship Apollo Lithium Project is situated, now has over 40 companies dedicated to lithium exploration. LU7’s assessments indicate a cumulative lithium resource exceeding 500Mt at +1% Lithium Oxide across eight distinct projects, which has increased over 100% within the last 12 months. We expect this to grow significantly over the coming years.
Downstream | Battery Demand
There will soon be a massive surge in battery manufacturing in North America, with over 20 major manufacturers planning to deploy an estimated 1,000GW of battery capacity by 2028. That is a ten-fold increase on today’s capacity.
These factories will soon have a voracious appetite – requiring upwards of 850,000t of processed lithium carbonate every year.
In order to ensure secure energy systems, both the US and Canada have also intensified efforts to reduce Chinese involvement in the sector. These strategies will further increase the demand for locally processed lithium chemicals.
Midstream |
Filling the
Lithium Conversion Gap
However, there are currentlv no operational hard rock converters in North America and only 100,000t of planned conversion capacity currently slated for construction in the region. This leaves a massive LITHIUM GAP between the growing mine supply and the needs of the battery manufacturers.
The company’s team of experts, dubbed the “Lithium Dream Team”, comprises of specialists in hard rock lithium extraction and downstream conversion operations. Strategic partnerships with engineering consultants Hatch Ltd and Primero Group have also been forged.
In collaboration with engineering consultants Hatch Ltd, the Dream Team previously spearheaded the successful construction of Galaxy’s state-of-the-art Jiangsu Lithium Carbonate facility in China. The project surpassed design expectations and successfully transitioned Galaxy from an exploration company to the first large-scale, fully integrated lithium project producing the world’s premier battery-grade carbonate.
By leveraging proven technology in spodumene concentration and lithium conversion design, Lithium Universe is working with Hatch to replicate the design and operational methodologies implemented at Jiangsu in order to minimize execution risk.
