EV/Lithium, page-988

..while the spot price for lithium chemical- carbonate has fallen, it has not fallen as hard as lithium ore (Spodumene).

..it suggest that EV growth has greater demand for lithium chemical, while demand for Spod may be more lacklustre because the 2 biggest EV battery makers have their own vertically integrated Spod mines that do not require them to place as large a demand on the spot market.


2024-08-19
#Lithium Carbonate 99.5%
Min China Spot Price: $10,458.00 1 day: $-70.00 (-0.66%) YTD: -23.56%
#Spodumene Concentrate (6%, CIF China) Price: $780.00 1 day: $-10.00 (-1.27%) YTD: -40.68%

https://x.com/LithiumPriceBot/status/1825462244466909257

..and do you see what China's big lithium miner is doing - going downstream into lithium battery making to cater to the EU market. And Ganfeng is consolidating China's footprint in the South American lithium mines.
Ganfeng Lithium wants to build batteries in Turkey - electrive.com

China's Ganfeng buys 14.9% stake in Lithium Argentina project in $70M deal (msn.com)

Now I think this is a smarter move by Ganfeng compared to PLS buying LRS. Chinese lithium that is not taken up by China market when China becomes fully 100% EV and thereafter lithium recycling takes over, can be deployed into vertically integrated battery operations invested in EU market.

PLS could get a re-rate if they follow a similar strategy getting into say a JV with an Indian partner & CATL for the Indian market to develop an EV battery production facility in India. PLS has no knowhow unlike the Chinese to do batteries, but could rope CATL (its partner) into it, but why would CATL need PLS as it has its own battery making prowess as well as lithium mines.

So this is where things get tricky for Australian lithium miners. Just digging Spod from the ground in a highly competitive market just does not cut as time progresses, I think Ganfeng already knows it.

Australian lithium miners could be left in the cold competing in a low cost lithium spot market environment against the likes of South American and African lithium miners, while the large Chinese lithium operators control the bulk of the lithium needs of major EV battery producers via vertically integrated chains.