Mid-stream processing, page-75

If you think about it, eventually, the mining and processing of Lithium leading into battery production will be split into two major regions globally, the East and the West, resulting in each region pricing spodumene concentrate, Lithium Carbonate and Hydroxide independently from the other. The long-extended shipping routes from one side of the world to the other for Lithium raw materials will be uneconomical, particularly with North American electrical vehicle pricing becoming more on par with internal combustion engine vehicles - I would think, initiatives and policies like the United States Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and local manufacturing will certainly play a role in this parting of ways.

Food for thought....