A Blog for Browsing Mining, Mineral Processing, and Metals Info

Sept 11 (#Reuters) – The rise of electric cars is spurring #Sherritt International Corp to consider branching into producing the types of #Nickel most sought after by battery manufacturers, the chief executive of the #Canadian company said on Monday.

David Pathe said Sherritt, which is one of the world’s largest producers of nickel, was studying the economics around building a plant to produce nickel sulphate, a powder-like substance particularly suited for use in batteries.

Read more at: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-sherritt-intl-nickel/canadas-sherritt-eyes-nickel-products-for-booming-battery-market-idUSKCN1BM2EP

#China’s new-energy auto firms saw shares surge in Monday morning trade, extending recent strong gains, after a government official said over the weekend that #China had begun looking at a ban on traditional petrol-engine cars.

Chinese electric-car maker BYD Co Ltd, backed by #US billionaire #WarrenBuffet, saw its shares jump, while #Lithium products maker Jiangxi Ganfeng Lithium Co Ltd rose more than 5 percent to a record high.

Read more at: https://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2017/09/11/business/11reuters-china-autos.html?_r=0

The devices produced sufficient energy for use in household electronics, but did not ignite – even when punctured repeatedly with a nail.

The batteries use a water-salt solution as their electrolyte, removing the risks carried by some non-aqueous commercial models.

Read more at: http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-41187824

#Bolivia will get another chance to develop its US$875mn state #Lithium project, after failing to line up bidders in May, a government official said.

Bolivia has been trying to build a US$900mn lithium project at #Uyuni for decades, but to date has only installed a pilot plant. The project is designed to produce 50,000t/y of lithium, in addition to potassium chloride and magnesium chloride. Germany’s K-Utec Technology is working on the plant’s final design.

Read more at: https://www.bnamericas.com/en/news/miningandmetals/bolivia-lining-up-bidders-for-uyuni-lithium-project/

#SouthKorea’s SK Innovation said on Thursday it has started commercial production of #Lithium-ion batteries with an increased portion of #Nickel, while reducing the usage of expensive components such as #Cobalt to extend battery life and cut costs.

Read more at: https://www.reuters.com/article/southkorea-skinnovation-battery-idUSL4N1LH25Y

The #London Metal Exchange is considering introducing a contract for #Lithium, a mineral that is in heavy demand because of its use in electric cars, as the 140-year old company tries to reverse a fall in volumes. The exchange, which sets the global price for metals such as #Copper, #Aluminium and #Nickel, has been looking at the feasibility of trading the metal, which is extracted in #SouthAmerica and #Australia and mostly sold in a white powder to battery makers.

Read more at: https://www.ft.com/content/24c36964-89af-11e7-bf50-e1c239b45787

Hidden within the salt flats high in the #Andes mountains of #SouthAmerica are vast deposits of the #Lithium that #ElonMusk may need for his electric car revolution. But extracting the mineral from brine ponds created by Orocobre Ltd. has proved more difficult than expected.

Bad weather and pump glitches meant production at the Olaroz facility in northern #Argentina was 21 percent below Orocobre’s initial target in the year through June. While things are getting back on track, Chief Executive Officer Richard Seville says the company “either underestimated the complexity or overestimated our capability.”

Read more at: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-08-21/supplying-lithium-gets-trickier-as-electric-revolution-quickens

#Nickel producer #Vale #Indonesia said Indonesia’s recent policy shift to allow ore exports is helping keep global prices of the metal low, and complicating efforts to establish partnerships for new smelter investments.

#Japanese miner #Sumitomo Metal Mining Co Ltd is partnering with Vale on a nickel processing plant in Pomalaa in Southeast #Sulawesi.

But “they are now more concerned about the calculations of their internal rate of return, because this is a $2 billion project,” Kanter said.

Read more at: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-vale-indonesia-nickel-idUSKBN1AP1AP

#Nickel-rich chemistries are popular due to higher energy density and lower costs

A higher #Cobalt price should incentivize rapid adoption of more nickel-heavy technologies.

Nickel Sulphate production from the dissolution of refined nickel powder (350kt) is more attractive.

Read more at: http://www.bhp.com/-/media/documents/media/reports-and-presentations/2017/170809_energisingourfuture.pdf

 

#Terra E Holding GmbH will choose one of five candidate sites in #Germany or a neighboring country next month to build its 34 gigawatt-hour battery factory, #Frankfurt-based Chief Executive Officer Holger Gritzka said in an interview. The former #ThyssenKrupp AG manager has helped to assemble a consortium of 17 #German companies and won government support for the project, which will break ground in the fourth quarter of 2019 and reach full capacity in 2028, he said.

Read more at: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-08-03/germany-giving-gigafactory-a-home-in-latest-challenge-to-tesla