At the beginning of next month or as contracts permit, a large lithium producer will be increasing global pricing for all of its lithium bromide products by 15 percent for all standard and non-standard pricing. The inflation is directly related to an "exponential spike" in the cost of key raw materials over the last few months.
More than four decades following the conception of Earth Day, international interest in alternative energy sources has become a strong focus of social, political and commercial enterprise. It is not just a matter of coincidence that a significant number of electric vehicle and lithium battery technology conferences have been scheduled at this time of year.
The 3rd Annual Lithium Supply and Markets Conference was hosted by Metal Bulletin last week at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. One of the keynote speakers at the event, Edward R Anderson, president of lithium consultants TRU Group Inc., indicated some bearish sentiments for lithium pipeline projects.
U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu joined seven other U.S. government agencies in launching a Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Export Initiative. Lithium investors will be familiar with the mandate of the initiative to promote renewable energy and energy efficiency exports.
A recent report reveals lithium carbonate is currently trading in the range of $5,500 to $6,000 per tonne, which is an improvement from the US$5,300 per tonne average of 2009.
Revenues for lithium showed a considerable relative improvement recording an increase of 47.6 percent compared with last year. This demonstrates that the lithium market has improved considerably compared to the market conditions observed during 2009.
Ford Motor Company and Portland General Electric announced a collaboration to help prepare the city of Portland share information on charging needs and requirements to ensure the electrical grid can support the necessary demand for electric vehicles. The recent collaborative follows a press release from the US Department of Energy for a $2.4 billion investment to further accelerate the manufacturing and deployment of electric vehicles, batteries, and components in the US.
The US Department of Energy will be providing a $28.4 million grant to expand the Silver Peak lithium production facility operated by the Chemetall Foote subsidiary of Rockwood Holdings. The funding grant represents 50 percent of the estimated project development upgrading costs.
Last week Japan's fourth-largest trading house, Itochu Corp., announced that it has taken a 20 percent stake in a U.S. project to produce lithium and that it expects to start sample shipments for use in car batteries by the end of this year.
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