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Released March 18, 2024 | SUGAR LAND
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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Last week, Lithium Americas Corporation (NYSE:LAC) (Vancouver, British Columbia) announced the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) had offered it a $2.26 billion loan to support construction of the processing plant that will accompany the Thacker Pass lithium mine, which is under construction in Nevada.
The DOE's loan offer, sanctioned under the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing loan program, represents the largest loan offered from the agency to date to a mining company. According to news media, the DOE's loan programs office saw a tenfold increase in its loan authority, from $40 billion to $400 billion, under the Inflation Reduction Act, which seeks to promote greener forms of energy and establish U.S. production of critical minerals and equipment.
The Thacker Pass lithium project encompasses multiple pieces. Construction of the mine portion kicked off last year, after a federal court case ruled that the project could proceed despite opposing groups' objections. For more information, see March 1, 2024, article - Federal Judge Paves Way for Development of Nevada Lithium Mine.
The loan specifically covers only the accompanying processing plant and not the digging of the open-pit mine, as warranted by U.S. laws. Thacker Pass will use a new method to extract lithium from clay that has not been used commercially before. In the process, sulfuric acid is combined with clay slurry to extract the lithium.
This process requires its own niche projects. The sulfuric acid will be made on site, as the raw sulfur is much safer to transport than sulfuric acid. The plant will be capable of producing 3,000 tons per day or more of sulfuric acid. Steam generated from the burning process used to manufacture the acid will be used to run a 45-megawatt cogeneration plant to help power the entire operation's facilities.
To ship the sulfur and other required materials to the site, Lithium Americas will build a rail-to-truck transloading facility 70 miles away in Winnemucca, Nevada, to ship the liquid sulfur, along with other materials such as soda ash, quick lime and diesel. Subscribers can learn more by viewing the project reports on the mine, processing plant, transloading facility, sulfuric acid plant, cogen unit and more.
And that's only Phase I of two. As envisioned, Phase I construction would result in the production of 40,000 tons per year of battery-grade lithium carbonate from 3.3 million tons per year of mined ore per year. This phase of construction will last about three years, with production expected to begin in 2027, ramping up to full capacity in 2028.
When Phase I ends, a second round of construction will launch to double production. This would essentially require much of the same as Phase I: an expansion of the mine and processing plant, another sulfuric acid plant, an expansion of the transloading facility and a new cogeneration plant. This phase could result in increased lithium production by 2029. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Metals & Minerals Project Database can learn more by viewing the project reports for Phase II.
The loan provides a helping hand not only to Lithium Americas, but also to General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) (GM) (Detroit, Michigan), which last year invested $650 million in the company to support the development of Thacker Pass, cementing an agreement that GM will receive 100% of the lithium produced from the mine for the first 15 years of production.
The DOE's first loan to a lithium project was offered early last year as a $700 million conditional loan for ioneer Limited's (Sydney, New South Wales) Rhyolite Ridge lithium-boron project near Silverpeak, Nevada. Construction is expected to kick off this year, putting the mine on track for completion in 2026. A leach plant will accompany the open-pit mine to extract 32,000 tons per year of lithium carbonate equivalent from 2.5 million tons per year of milled ore over a 26-year mine life. Subscribers can learn more about the project by clicking here. For more information, see January 18, 2023, article - Rhyolite Ridge Lithium Project in Nevada Receives Conditional DOE Loan.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI Metals & Minerals Database can click here to view reports for many of the projects discussed in this article and click here for the related plant profiles.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).
The DOE's loan offer, sanctioned under the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing loan program, represents the largest loan offered from the agency to date to a mining company. According to news media, the DOE's loan programs office saw a tenfold increase in its loan authority, from $40 billion to $400 billion, under the Inflation Reduction Act, which seeks to promote greener forms of energy and establish U.S. production of critical minerals and equipment.
The Thacker Pass lithium project encompasses multiple pieces. Construction of the mine portion kicked off last year, after a federal court case ruled that the project could proceed despite opposing groups' objections. For more information, see March 1, 2024, article - Federal Judge Paves Way for Development of Nevada Lithium Mine.
The loan specifically covers only the accompanying processing plant and not the digging of the open-pit mine, as warranted by U.S. laws. Thacker Pass will use a new method to extract lithium from clay that has not been used commercially before. In the process, sulfuric acid is combined with clay slurry to extract the lithium.
This process requires its own niche projects. The sulfuric acid will be made on site, as the raw sulfur is much safer to transport than sulfuric acid. The plant will be capable of producing 3,000 tons per day or more of sulfuric acid. Steam generated from the burning process used to manufacture the acid will be used to run a 45-megawatt cogeneration plant to help power the entire operation's facilities.
To ship the sulfur and other required materials to the site, Lithium Americas will build a rail-to-truck transloading facility 70 miles away in Winnemucca, Nevada, to ship the liquid sulfur, along with other materials such as soda ash, quick lime and diesel. Subscribers can learn more by viewing the project reports on the mine, processing plant, transloading facility, sulfuric acid plant, cogen unit and more.
And that's only Phase I of two. As envisioned, Phase I construction would result in the production of 40,000 tons per year of battery-grade lithium carbonate from 3.3 million tons per year of mined ore per year. This phase of construction will last about three years, with production expected to begin in 2027, ramping up to full capacity in 2028.
When Phase I ends, a second round of construction will launch to double production. This would essentially require much of the same as Phase I: an expansion of the mine and processing plant, another sulfuric acid plant, an expansion of the transloading facility and a new cogeneration plant. This phase could result in increased lithium production by 2029. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Metals & Minerals Project Database can learn more by viewing the project reports for Phase II.
The loan provides a helping hand not only to Lithium Americas, but also to General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) (GM) (Detroit, Michigan), which last year invested $650 million in the company to support the development of Thacker Pass, cementing an agreement that GM will receive 100% of the lithium produced from the mine for the first 15 years of production.
The DOE's first loan to a lithium project was offered early last year as a $700 million conditional loan for ioneer Limited's (Sydney, New South Wales) Rhyolite Ridge lithium-boron project near Silverpeak, Nevada. Construction is expected to kick off this year, putting the mine on track for completion in 2026. A leach plant will accompany the open-pit mine to extract 32,000 tons per year of lithium carbonate equivalent from 2.5 million tons per year of milled ore over a 26-year mine life. Subscribers can learn more about the project by clicking here. For more information, see January 18, 2023, article - Rhyolite Ridge Lithium Project in Nevada Receives Conditional DOE Loan.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI Metals & Minerals Database can click here to view reports for many of the projects discussed in this article and click here for the related plant profiles.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).
