PLL General Discussion, page-30

If you listen to the recent RK equity recent presentation "Is the Structural Deficit Here to Stay" Fastmarkets note around the 14min mark that brownfield expansions have a 6 month product qualification period. This product qualification period is longer for greenfields expansions. So even expansion in the same site area can take six months for purchasers to qualify the product as suitable. Why would it take 6 months or longer for a purchaser to confirm the product is suitable - because Lithium is a specialty chemical not a generic commodity.

Would there be a risk of supply substitution clauses for a generic commodity? - yes. But lithium isn't a generic commodity its a specialty chemical. Lithium being a specialty chemical will be why the site location is critical to the contract. I guess these same people would also suggest wine companies could just increase production of signature wines by just importing grapes from a different region.