Democrat senator Joe Manchin warned a committee that China could use critical minerals as “leverage” over the US as the country ramps up its electric vehicle ambitions. China dominates in the processing of battery minerals, forecast to produce 66% of the world’s lithium chemicals, 75% of nickel sulphate and 76% of refined cobalt this year, […]
> StarPlus Energy, a joint venture between Stellantis and Samsung SDI, has received a conditional loan of $7.54 billion from the US Department of Energy (DoE) to help finance the development of two gigafactories in Indiana. The investment supports a trend of South Korean battery players driving US battery production. “Despite a global slowdown in battery […]
> China has postponed the implementation of its expanded rare earth export controls announced in early October following high-level US-China trade negotiations in South Korea this week. It marks a temporary easing in what had become an escalating front in the tit-for-tat US–China trade confrontation. The announcement follows extensive economic and trade consultations in Kuala Lumpur, […]
> Lithium chemical prices spiked in China on Monday following a bullish speech by the chairman of Ganfeng – the world’s third-largest lithium producer – in which it was suggested that lithium demand growth could reach 30% in 2026. In a keynote speech on 16 November at the 10th International Summit on Power Battery Application in […]
> Indonesia has issued a ban on the issuance of new smelter permits for nickel matte, mixed hydroxide precipitate (MHP), and nickel pig iron (NPI), in a bid to curb overcapacity and incentivise value‑added investment in the battery supply chain. The policy marks the latest chapter in the Indonesian government’s strategic pivot in its nickel industrialisation […]
> 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 […]
> Indonesia’s recently inagurated president Prabowo Subianto witnessed the signing of a $1.4 billion high pressure acid leach (HPAL) agreement between PT Vale Indonesia and China’s GEM in Beijing last week, an early success for the new president’s ambition to continue the ‘downstreaming’ policy that defined predecessor Joko Widodo’s tenure in office. Under the terms of […]
> US President Donald Trump this week secured major investments in US-based projects from Japan and South Korea covering critical minerals, stationary storage, and other high-priority sectors, as part of trade agreements to lower US tariff barriers. The trade deals come ahead of a high-level meeting between President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping – the […]
> Benchmark Mineral Intelligence announced today that it has started a formal consultation on changes to the sustainable lithium and sustainable nickel grades in its Lithium Price Assessment and Nickel Price Assessment Methodologies. Benchmark proposes to change the frequency of updates to its list of eligible producers, whose material can contribute to these grades, from quarterly […]