“Sometimes the best relationships are formed by the most unlikely pair.”
Kenneth G. Ortiz, Author
Lithium-ion batteries are a hot commodity these days. Because of the growing demand, the need for battery manufacturing is ballooning. Opportunities like this make for strange bedfellows. Case in point, an unlikely new partnership between an oil giant and a manufacturer of EV battery materials just emerged.
LG Chem, based in Seoul, Korea, is building a $3 billion factory to produce battery cathodes for EVs. Construction on the plant in Tennessee began in 2023. When complete, it will be largest of its kind in the US, injecting momentum into the domestic battery supply chain and EV market. For instance, an agreement has already been inked for this factory to supply General Motors with enough cathode material to produce 5 million EVs.
An unlikely new partnership
This week, an article popped onto my radar screen announcing a new partnership related to that story. One of the materials needed to make cathodes is lithium. And guess who has agreed to supply LG Chem with the lithium? Exxon Mobil. I didn’t see that coming.
It turns out Exxon Mobil owns a massive lithium mine in Arkansas. They are preparing to extract the precious metal using a new technique called Direct Lithium Extraction (DLE), which produces only 1/3 of the carbon emissions of traditional mining practices. They plan to provide LG Chem with 100,000 tons of lithium carbonate. According to the oil giant, the deal “contributes to domestic energy security, manufacturing, jobs and emission reduction”.
In related, and even more surprising news, Exxon Mobil’s CEO recently urged the US to stay in the Paris Agreement (the international treaty to reach net-zero emissions by 2050). He said his company supports the goals of the agreement, and added that uncertainty about climate goals is bad for business.
What can we make of this? I choose to believe market forces are taking shape which are making it smart business to invest in the clean energy transition. I’ll keep watching for more stories like this with the idea in mind that the more we look for good things, the more they will appear.
Let’s do something about climate change. Learn about it. Think about it. Talk about it.