M&A in battery metals space .. are we in play?, page-123

VW and Vale talking? if so, this would have implications for CTM as Vale has rights to off-take

VW expects battery, raw material drive to cost up to $34 bln

"...Volkswagen also had to make sure it gets enough raw materials, such as lithium and nickel. This requires a more proactive approach and Schmall said that Volkswagen was looking to strike partnerships, with cooperation announcements due "in some weeks". Volkswagen, which plans to submit its next five-year investment plan to the supervisory board on Dec. 9, is pursuing a mix of strategies, which might even include becoming a shareholder in a mining firm. "You will see the full range," Schmall said, also referring to fixed and mixed price contracts with suppliers. "You have to tailor-fit solutions, necessarily, to specific raw materials." This also requires making sure that materials are procured sustainably, which, in Volkswagen's case, includes transparency reports, supplier ratings, and efforts to phase out some materials, most notably cobalt. In the end, Schmall said, the goal was to ensure that the full production chain was sustainable, adding that producing electric vehicles alone was not enough for Volkswagen, which is aiming to be carbon neutral by 2050 at the latest..."