A Lexus EV charging. Source: Toyota
The North Sydney-based lithium-boron producer Ioneer has signed an agreement with a joint venture between Toyota and Panasonic to provide lithium carbonate from its Rhyolite Ridge Lithium-Boron Project in Nevada.
Ioneer announced this week that it had signed a binding off-take supply agreement with the Prime Planet Energy & Solutions (PPES) joint venture formed between Japanese giants Toyota Motors and Panasonic.
PPES was formed in early 2020 to develop highly competitive and cost-effective electric vehicle (EV) batteries which will be supplied not only to Toyota, but a broader range of customers.
Under the new supply agreement, Ioneer will deliver 4,000 tonnes per annum of lithium carbonate to PPES over a 5-year term, which will in turn be used to produce batteries for use in US electric vehicles.
“Ioneer is grateful to announce another key milestone for our company with a lithium carbonate offtake agreement with PPES. PPES is a world-class organisation, and we look forward to being their trusted partner,” said James Calaway, Ioneer’s executive chairman (PDF).
“This and the previously announced Ford and EcoPro agreements solidify Ioneer’s focus on the US Electric Vehicle supply chain infrastructure. We look forward to providing lithium materials to PPES and all our offtake partners for their growth in the EV global market.”
Ioneer’s agreement with Ford was announced two weeks ago and will see the company deliver 7,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate per anum, which will be used in the production of batteries for Ford’s electric vehicles through Ford’s own battery manufacturing joint venture with SK On, BlueOval SK.
These two agreements also build on an expanded supply agreement with EcoPro Group, a major cathode supplier for global battery manufacturers, which increased its offtake volume with Ioneer to 7,000 tonnes per anum earlier this year.
Ioneer is currently expecting to produce an annual average of around 20,600 tonnes of lithium carbonate/hydroxide alongside approximately 174,400 tonnes of boric acid per year over the 26-year lifespan of Rhyolite Ridge.
According to Ioneer, the dual production of lithium and boric acid allows Ioneer to not only produce lithium in the United States, but to do so as the very bottom of the global cost curve.
Ioneer expects to begin production in 2025.
Keyword: Australian lithium producer signs deal to boost Toyota EV battery capacity