According to the latest report, Ford said on Monday it had signed a preliminary agreement with Lake Resources NL to buy lithium at a plant in Argentina, the first time the automaker has publicly announced where it will buy material for electric vehicle batteries.
The deal is a big bet from Ford on direct lithium extraction (DLE). Direct lithium extraction is a relatively new technology that filters metals from brines, using a much smaller area than open-pit mines and evaporation ponds.
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Moreover, GM, BMW, Stellantis, and other Ford rivals have already signed supply agreements with companies planning to use DLE technology. Ford’s goal is to purchase 25,000 tonnes of white metal annually from Lake’s Kachi project in northern Argentina. The project is being developed by privately held mining startup Lilac Solutions Inc.
Like all of DLE’s technology, Lilac’s technology has not yet been commercialized, but it is backed by Bill Gates’s Breakthrough Energy Ventures and other high-profile investors. The agreement between Lake Resources and Ford is non-binding and needs to include a specific delivery schedule in the finalized agreement.
Furthermore, Sydney-based Lake Resources is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange, which requires public disclosure of supply transactions. The Kachi project, located in northern Argentina, near the Chilean border, is expected to cost about $540 million and be commissioned in 2024.
