WASHINGTON – Today President Biden is meeting with administration and state partners, industry executives, community representatives, labor leaders, and California Governor Gavin Newsom to announce major investments in domestic production of critical minerals and materials, according to a White House press release.
President Biden will announce the Department of Defense’s Industrial Base Analysis and Sustainment program has awarded MP Materials $35 million to separate and process heavy rare earth elements at its facility in Mountain Pass, CA, establishing an end-to-end domestic permanent magnet supply chain.
In addition, MP Materials will invest another $700 million and create more than 350 jobs in the magnet supply chain by 2024. Currently, China controls 87% of the global permanent magnet market, used in EV motors, defense systems, electronics, and wind turbines.
This spring Berkshire Hathaway Energy Renewables (BHE Renewables) will break ground on a new demonstration facility in Imperial County, CA, to test the commercial viability of their sustainable lithium extraction process from geothermal brine as part of a multibillion-dollar investment in sustainable lithium production over the next five years. If successful, this sets the company a path toward commercial-scale production of battery-grade lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate by 2026. Imperial Valley contains some of the largest deposits of lithium in the world, says the White House. Once at scale, BHE Renewables facilities could produce 90,000 metric tons of lithium per year.
Redwood Materials will discuss a pilot, in partnership with Ford and Volvo, for collection and recycling of end-of-life lithium-ion batteries at its Nevada-based facilities to extract lithium, cobalt, nickel, and graphite.
Secretary Granholm will discuss DOE’s $140 million demonstration project funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to recover rare earth elements and critical minerals from coal ash and other mine waste. She will also discuss $3 billion in BIL funding to invest in refining battery materials such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, and graphite, and battery recycling facilities, creating clean energy manufacturing jobs.
MP Materials recently announced construction of a rare earth metal, alloy and magnet manufacturing facility in Texas and a long-term supply agreement with General Motors to power the motors in more than a dozen of GM’s EV models. Production will begin next year, with capacity to produce enough magnets to power 500,000 EV motors annually.
Controlled Thermal Resources and EnergySource Minerals also have established operations in Imperial County to extract lithium from geothermal brine. GM will source lithium for EV batteries from CTR. The companies are also working with the Lithium Valley Commission to develop a royalty structure that would invest profits from their operations in infrastructure, health, and educational investments for the residents of the surrounding region.
Tesla intends to source high-grade nickel for EV batteries from Talon Metals’ Tamarack nickel project under development in Minnesota. Talon Metals and the United Steelworkers have established a workforce development partnership for the project to train workers on next-generation technologies in the local community and from mining regions in the US facing declining demand. Talon has agreed to remain neutral in any union organizing efforts by USW.
