- It will involve the supply of approximately 55,000 metric tons of lithium carbonate equivalent
- In November, SQM said that its plans to boost its production of lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide by the second half of 2021 were still on track
As per a report by Reuters, Chile’s SQM said that it has signed a long-term agreement with LG Energy Solution to supply the company with ultralight metal lithium, a main ingredient in powering EVs. The report said that the company said that the contract would run between 2021 and 2029. It will involve the supply of approximately 55,000 metric tons of lithium carbonate equivalent as per a statement by SQM.
The report added that Pablo Altimiras, who oversees SQM’s lithium business, said the deal demonstrated confidence in the quality of the company’s product. He said that these are long-term contracts that point to SQM’s stability and the company would continue seeking out such deals in the future.
Lock down supplies of lithium
As per the report, LG Chem, an electric car battery supplier for Tesla Inc and GM, said in September that it would separate its battery making business into a new company – LG Energy Solution. This was done to meet demand from European car makers and increasing sales of cylindrical batteries used in Tesla cars.
The report said that car and battery makers in the United States, Europe and China are scrambling to lock down supplies of lithium ahead of an anticipated boom in demand for electric vehicles. In November, SQM said that its plans to boost its production of lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide by the second half of 2021 were still on track. It added that SQM also plans to increase its production capacity to 180,000 and 30,000 metric tons of lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide, respectively, by 2023.
