Development of the 50:50 joint venture lithium hydroxide refinery between Northvolt and Portuguese oil and gas major Galp has ended after Northvolt collapsed and Galp failed to find an alternative partner. The refinery was planned to have a capacity of up to 35,000 tonnes of lithium hydroxide (30,000 tonnes lithium carbonate equivalent) and come online […]
> Once heralded as Europe’s best shot at competing in the global battery industry, Northvolt has filed for bankruptcy in Sweden. This follows its bankruptcy filing in the US last November. Northvolt’s hopes at securing further investment to support its operations fell through on Wednesday, following the company’s struggles to ramp up production at its gigafactory […]
> In the third quarter of 2025, 18 of the largest 25 copper miners reported quarter-on-quarter decreases in their output, including the top four miners. The total Q3 copper production reported by the top 25 miners hit 3.72Mt. “In the third quarter, many companies saw lower production compared to the previous quarter. However, most did not […]
> South Korean steel and chemicals giant POSCO has taken a 30% stake in Australia’s Mineral Resources’ (MinRes) 50% stakes in the Mt Marion and Wodgina mines for US$765 million. Structured as a joint venture, the deal would see MinRes and POSCO hold an overall 35% and 15% of the operations, as well as corresponding rights […]
> The UK currently has no operating lithium extraction facilities. However, there are ambitious plans to develop this industry, with 97,000 tonnes LCE per year of nameplate capacity in the pipeline at various stages of funding and development. Direct lithium extraction (DLE) from geothermal brines accounts for 60% of this pipeline, according to Benchmark’s Lithium Forecast. […]
> Chinese-owned Volvo Cars is taking over its joint venture with Northvolt as the battery manufacturer struggles with scaling production and challenging market conditions. The joint venture, NOVO Energy, was expected to begin production in 2026 from a facility in Gothenburg, Sweden. The project has planned investments of $2.8 billion and a 2030 pipeline capacity of […]
> Escalating unrest in Mali, as jihadi groups target fuel convoys around the capital Bamako, has led several governments including France and the US to advise their citizens to leave the country. The attacks have created fuel shortages, and raised serious concerns around the military government’s ability to maintain its rule in the country. Mali is […]
> India’s pipeline of cathode active material (CAM) production capacity is set to grow more than 50-fold over the next decade. Altmin, Himadri Speciality Chemical, and Epsilon Advanced Materials have the largest pipeline capacities in the country. Almost all CAM capacity under development in India is for LFP, both due to the popularity of the cathode […]
> Vulcan Energy Resources, an Australian DLE (direct lithium extraction) developer operating in Europe, has signed an eight-year offtake agreement with commodity trader Glencore. Under this agreement Glencore will take 40,000 tonnes of lithium hydroxide (35,200 tonnes LCE) over an eight-year period starting from when Vulcan Energy enters commercial production, towards the end of the decade. […]