Graphite producer Syrah Technologies LLC, lithium producer Albemarle Corp. and lithium miner Piedmont Lithium Inc. are among 20 companies awarded $2.8 billion in U.S. funding for domestic critical minerals projects, the Biden administration said Oct. 19.
The federal funds, authorized under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, will be distributed to 20 U.S. manufacturing and processing companies seeking to contribute to the battery supply chain. The White House estimates that the federal spending, when matched by fund recipients, will lead to more than $9 billion in investments related to the domestic production of electric vehicle batteries and will contribute to the production of enough lithium to support 2 million EVs annually.
"Together, these companies are going to build new, commercial-scale battery production and processing facilities all across America," President Joe Biden said in an Oct. 19 speech.
Recipients of the funding were quick to express their enthusiasm.
"Receiving the [Department of Energy] grant affirms Albemarle's position as a global market leader and one of the only lithium companies currently producing battery-grade lithium from U.S. resources," Albemarle Chairman, President and CEO Kent Masters said in a news release. "Expanding our U.S. footprint also increases the speed of lithium processing and reduces greenhouse gas emissions from long-distance transportation of raw minerals. We hope this project spurs additional investment by others in the domestic EV battery supply chain, such as cathode manufacturers, battery makers, and auto manufacturers."
The Biden administration has set a goal for half of all new car sales in the U.S. to be EVs by 2030.
"Producing advanced batteries and components here at home will accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels to meet the strong demand for electric vehicles," U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm said in a press release.
Syrah, which previously received funding from the DOE, secured additional money to support an expansion of its Vidalia graphite plant in Louisiana. The company is a subsidiary of Australia-based Syrah Resources Ltd.
Battery recycler Ascend Elements Inc. will receive $316 million, the largest single award the administration announced, to support efforts to develop U.S. production capacity of precursor cathode materials using both recycled cathode materials from spent lithium-ion batteries and metal salts. The company plans to match the funding.
The funding will contribute to the installation of the first large-scale commercial lithium electrolyte salt production facility, the first lithium-iron-phosphate cathode facility and the first commercial-scale silicon oxide production facilities in the U.S., the White House said in a press release.
"We may be our own supply chain, but if things continue to move in the right direction, we’re going to be supplying the rest of the world as well for a lot of things," Biden said Oct. 19.
The administration also said it would launch the American Battery Materials Initiative, which will in part "align ongoing work on critical mineral supply chains, coordinate community and industry engagement, help guide research, grants, and loans supporting environmentally responsible critical minerals extraction, processing, and recycling, and aid diplomatic efforts to build reliable and sustainable global supply chains."
The initiative will work through the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment, a project created by the U.S. and other G-7 member nations to fund international infrastructure, and will be led by a White House steering committee and coordinated by the DOE with support from the Interior Department.
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