US Government Gives Grants Worth $2.8B to Build Up EV Batteries Supply Chain

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NEW YORK, Nov. 8, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The United States is continuing to build its domestic EV battery supply chain. The Biden administration has awarded grants totaling $2.8 billion for developing electric vehicle (EV) battery manufacturing facilities in the United States, as the country works to reduce its reliance on Asia. President Joe Biden has set a goal of electrifying half of all new vehicles sold by 2030. Demand for critical minerals critical for EV batteries is expected to skyrocket in the next decade due to increased EV sales, which Biden is calling "one of the most significant economic transitions since the Industrial Revolution." According to the US Department of Energy, the approved projects will eventually supply enough lithium to produce 2 million EVs, enough graphite to produce 1.2 million EVs, and enough nickel to produce 400,000 EVs per year. Albemarle (NYSE:ALB), Talon Metals (TSX:TLO) (OTCPK:TLOFF), and American Battery Technology Co (OTCQB:ABML) are among the companies that have received funding. Meanwhile, FE Battery Metals Corp. (CSE:FE) (OTCQB:FEMFD) and Sayona Mining Limited (OTCQB:SYAXF) are driving the electric future with their lithium mining projects.

FE Battery Metals (CSE:FE) (OTCQB:FEMFD) is a Canadian mineral exploration company with a focus on locating, acquiring, and investigating mineral prospects in North America for industrial, base, and precious metals.

On November 8, FE Battery Metals announced results from drill hole LC22-39 from the Phase 2 exploratory drill program at its 100% owned Augustus Lithium Property in Quebec, Canada. According to the results, drill hole LC21-39 intersected three lithium pegmatites, with the main 7.3 m wide pegmatite zone averaging 1.54% lithium oxide (Li2O) at 188.7m drilled depth.

The drill program is based on the historical and 2021 Phase 1 exploration data as well as the company's surface trenching and sampling program results. Several historical drill hole collars were also located on the Property, which helped in the current program's location and orientation of drill holes. A B-20 drill rig is deployed for this work, which can drill up to a 1,000-meter-deep hole. To date a total of 42 drill holes with a cumulative core drilling of over 7,500 m has been completed on the Property.

In October, FE Battery Metals announced the results of drill holes LC21-33 to 37 at Augustus. Among the highlights of the results was drill hole LC21-35 intersecting an 11.20-meter-wide zone with 0.91% lithium oxide (Li2O) at 146 meters, including a 5 meter zone with 1.03% Li2O at 146 meters and 3.2 meter with 1% Li2O at 154 meters. This drill hole also has a lower seven meters wide zone with 0.54% Li2O at 165 meters drilled depth and several other smaller intercepts with variable lithium grades.

The company also recently announced a corporate restructuring to spin off assets related to its current exploration properties located in Quebec and Ontario into a wholly-owned subsidiary. According to the company, each FE Battery Metals shareholder will receive one common share of Spinco for every post-consolidation share held.

FE Battery Metals also has completed a non-brokered private placement for gross proceeds of up to $1.5 million by issuing roughly 6.7 million shares at a price of $0.225.

For more information about FE Battery Metals Ltd (CSE:FE) (OTCQB:FEMFD), click here. 

Companies Are Advancing Critical Minerals Projects

Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) subsidiary, Albemarle Lithium UK Limited, has completed the $200 million acquisition of Guangxi Tianyuan New Energy Materials. In September 2021, a definitive agreement was announced to acquire Tianyuan. Tianyuan's operations include a lithium conversion plant with a designed annual conversion capacity of up to 25,000 metric tonnes LCE and the ability to produce battery-grade lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide. Albermarle has received a nearly $150 million grant from the US Department of Energy. The grant funding is intended to cover a portion of the estimated cost of building a new commercial-scale lithium concentrator facility in the US at the company's Kings Mountain, North Carolina.

Talon Metals (TSX:TLO) (OTC Pink:TLOFF) announced that it has updated its mineral resource estimate for its Tamarack Nickel project in Minnesota. The total indicated mineral resource is estimated to be 8.56 million tonnes grading 1.73% nickel plus by-products (2.34% NiEq) containing 148,000 tonnes of nickel. Compared to Talon's previous indicated mineral resource estimate (PEA #3), this represents a 98% increase in contained nickel in the indicated category. The total inferred resource estimate is now around 8.46 million tonnes grading 0.83% nickel plus by-products (1.19% NiEq) containing 70,000 tonnes of nickel, in addition to the total indicated mineral resource. Talon Metals' wholly-owned subsidiary, Talon Nickel (USA) LLC has been selected as a recipient of President Joe Biden's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law's first set of projects to expand domestic manufacturing of batteries for EVs and the electrical grid, as well as materials and components currently imported from other countries.

Sayona Mining Limited (OTC:SYAXF) has developed a transport solution for its North American Lithium (NAL) operation, with a contract to deliver NAL spodumene (lithium) concentrate to port awarded to a Québec rail operator. Solurail Logistique Inc., a Val d'Or company specializing in bulk transhipment and rail logistics, will be in charge of transporting lithium from the NAL operation in La Corne to the Port of Trois-Rivières for delivery to customers under the terms of the agreement. The C$43 million contract includes the rental of 110 rolling stock (railway vehicles), with the equipment ready for NAL's restart of production in the first quarter of 2023. Sayona Mining is targeting the further expansion of its Québec lithium resource with the launch of a pre–feasibility study for its emerging Moblan Lithium Project (Sayona 60%; SOQUEM 40%) in northern Québec. Continuing Sayona's focus on maximizing economic benefits for local stakeholders, InnovExplo will conduct the pre–feasibility study, targeting completion by May 2023.

American Battery Technology Co (OTCQB:ABML) has completed its Phase 2 drill program, which included six additional sites in addition to the 16-holes sampled in Phase 1 drilling, completing the 22-hole plan at its 10,340-acre Tonopah Flats Lithium Project. American Battery Technology has been chosen as a recipient of competitive funding under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for expanding domestic manufacturing of battery-grade lithium hydroxide for lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles, focusing on domestic production. In collaboration with grant partners DuPont Water Solutions, the University of Nevada, Reno, and Argonne National Laboratory, American Battery Technology was awarded $57 million from the Department of Energy for this project to design, build, commission, and operate a first-of-its-kind commercial-scale facility. This facility will be used to demonstrate its novel process for producing battery cathode grade lithium hydroxide from unconventional Nevada-based lithium-bearing sedimentary resources.

FE Battery Metals has the option to buy a 100% interest in the Red Lake Gold Property, which consists of 94 mining cell claims that cover approximately 1,880 hectares in Ontario, Canada.

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