In this issue: Tesla aims to halve battery costs, the US government funds rare earth element extraction from coal, California sets 2035 as cut-off date for new ICE vehicles, and more.
DeepGreen touts ocean-floor battery metal collection for carbon reduction
A study commissioned by DeepGreen appears to show an up to 90% reduction in carbon emissions for ocean-floor polymetallic nodule collection as opposed to conventional battery metal mining, Power Materials learns from a company release.
The Vancouver-based company recently published the results of its sponsored study in the Journal of Cleaner Production. The study compared production of four metals - nickel, cobalt, manganese, and copper - from deep-sea nodule collection with production from conventional sources, with a 1 billion 75KWh EV battery goal as the benchmark.
“Terrestrial miners are handicapped by challenges like falling ore grades, as lower concentrations of metal lead to greater requirements of energy, materials, and land area to produce the same amount of metal,” said the study’s lead author Daina Paulikas of the University of Delaware’s Center for Minerals, Materials and Society. “Furthermore, the actual collection of nodules entails a relatively low energy, land, and waste footprint compared to a conventional mine. When it comes to emissions, even when we assume a complete phase-out of coal use from background electric grids for process inputs, our model shows that metal production from high-grade polymetallic nodules can still produce a 70% advantage.”
US government, Energy Fuels eye coal as potential rare earth element source
The US government plans to fund uranium miner Energy Fuels Inc’s exploration of rare earth element (REE) production from coal, Power Materials understands.
In a company release, Energy Fuels says the funding from the US Department of Energy, Office of Fossil Energy, and the National Energy Technology Laboratory will be used to develop a method of extracting rare-earth oxides (REOs) from coal “...in an environmentally benign fashion.”
The research will be done in conjunction with a team from Penn State University.
“Energy Fuels has been carrying out substantial work over the past year to explore the potential for implementing a commercial rare earth recovery and processing program at our White Mesa Mill,” said CEO Mark Chalmers. “This initiative to produce REOs from coal-based resources is complementary to our ongoing efforts and will potentially broaden the sources of REE feedstock available to us in the future. We also hope this project opens the door for us to work with the DOE and other agencies on future rare earth initiatives.”
Chalmers added that the US government is growing increasingly interested in developing an integrated, domestic REE supply chain. A funding amount will be released pending review of the conceptual project created by Energy Fuels and Penn State.
Electrify America to offer free charging for new electric Volkswagen buyers
Virginia’s Electrify America public charging network has inked a deal with Volkwagen of America to give 2021 VW ID.4 electric SUV owners three years of free charging, according to an Electrify America release.
Electrify America operates more than 470 charging stations across the US, including a cross-country Washington, DC, to Los Angeles, California, network, Power Materials notes.
“With a relentless commitment to driving the electric vehicle industry forward, Electrify America opened DC fast-charging stations at an accelerated pace of 1.2 per business day in 2019,” said CEO Giovanni Palazzo. “As more and more electric vehicles are introduced to the market, and consumer interest grows, we are excited to announce this agreement with Volkswagen to deliver fast and accessible charging to ID.4 customers and a new wave of EV adopters.”
Electrify America is in the midst of expanding its network to 800 charging stations - or 3,500 DC fast chargers - by December 2021.
“The ID.4 was engineered, loaded and priced to win the hearts of SUV owners who are simply ready to go electric - and fall in love with Volkswagen again,” said Volkswagen CEO Scott Keogh. “By adding three years of fast charging at no additional cost through Electrify America, we are eliminating all barriers for mainstream compact SUV buyers to go electric.”
UK sets 2030 as the cut-off for production of new ICE cars
The UK is shaving 10 years off its proposed new internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle ban, effectively setting the cut-off date for new ICE car production at 2030, according to reporting by The Guardian.
The Guardian notes that Prime Minister Boris Johnson was set to formally announce the accelerated timeline this week, but “...the announcement will be delayed until later this year as it focuses on tackling the rising number of coronavirus cases.”
Power Materials learns from The Guardian that the government’s original 2040 plan was adjusted “...following assurances that the UK’s infrastructure will be ready to cope with the shift to electric cars.”
Tesla teases $25,000 EV in 3 years, -56% battery KWh cost
Tesla plans to more than halve the cost of electric vehicle batteries with a slate of technological and process improvements, ultimately yielding a $25,000 electric, autonomous car in three years,Power Materials learned from the company’s Battery Day presentation September 22.
Vertical integration and re-thinking of nearly every facet of battery and vehicle production was necessary to produce those projected savings, said CEO Elon Musk and senior vice president of powertrain and energy engineering Drew Baglino.
“Obviously, we need to make more affordable cars,” Musk said. “I think one of the things that troubles me the most is we don’t yet have a truly affordable car. And that’s something we’ll make in the future. But in order to do that, we’ve got to get the cost of batteries down, we need to get better at manufacturing, and we need to do something about this curve.”
The first step was enlarging the battery’s form factor and creating a shingled interior. This so-called tabless battery enables electrons to move more efficiently through the battery, producing a 14% KWh cost reduction.
A shift from a wet electrode process to a dry process - spurred by the company’s acquisition of Maxwell Technologies - will save a further 18% and drastically reduce the company’s battery factory footprint.
“Tesla is basically aiming to be the best at manufacturing of any company on earth,” said Musk. “Eventually, every car company will have long-range electric cars...but not every company will be great at manufacturing. Tesla will be absolutely head and shoulders above everyone else, that is the goal.”
Tesla then examined the anode and concluded that raw, metallic silicon utilizing a binder was cheaper and more efficient than the current crop of highly processed silicon materials. Using metallic silicon yields a 5% reduction per KWh.
“Why is silicon awesome?” Baglino said. “It’s awesome because it’s the most abundant element in the earth’s crust after oxygen. It’s sand.”
The company next took the step of replacing current-gen cobalt cathodes with nickel, using a process that eliminated the legacy metal sulphate step. Tesla also plans to release iron, nickel-manganese, and pure nickel versions of its batteries in-step with projected range requirements, with pure nickel ending up in long-haul semi trucks. The cathode adjustments will save 12% per KWh.
Lithium for its batteries - another potentially limiting factor - has been mitigated by Tesla’s rights to more than 10,000 acres of lithium deposit acreage in Nevada.
“Lithium is not like oil. There’s a massive amount of it pretty much everywhere. There’s enough lithium in the United States to convert the entire United States fleet to electric,” Musk said. A new Tesla-developed process using ordinary salt for extraction dramatically lowers the environmental footprint for lithium production, Musk added.
“We can sort of take a chunk of dirt out of the ground, remove the lithium, and put the chunk of dirt back in the ground,” he said.
Finally, Tesla plans to make its batteries structural and to cast the vehicle in two pieces using a proprietary aluminum alloy.
This saves an additional 7% per KWh, for a total of 56% savings.
“In the early days of aircraft, they’d carry the fuel tanks as cargo. Then someone said, ‘What if we just make the fuel tanks in wing shape?” Musk said. “We’re doing the same for cars.”
Taken together, Tesla’s KWh reductions and planned efficiencies will bring the cost of a fully electric, autonomous vehicle to $25,000 in three years, Musk said.
Throughout the presentation, Musk stressed that the promised cost savings and total KWh capacity expansions would take time, money, and effort - a point he reiterated on Twitter prior to the Battery Day event.
He also prefaced his Battery Day presentation by saying that Tesla would continue to utilize third-party suppliers.
“We intend to increase, not reduce battery cell purchases from Panasonic, LG & CATL (possibly other partners too). However, even with our cell suppliers going at maximum speed, we still foresee significant shortages in 2022 & beyond unless we also take action ourselves,” he tweeted.
First Cobalt questions Tesla move to replace cobalt in next-gen batteries
Toronto’s First Cobalt salutes Tesla’s plan to vertically integrate its battery business but believes removing cobalt from its battery recipe mix could be difficult - and definitely not desirable.
“The limiting factor for growth of the EV market is cell production, from the mine to cell manufacturing,” said CEO Trent Mell in a statement. “Tesla's strategic decision to vertically integrate into battery manufacturing is a harbinger of things to come and a warning to other EV manufacturers on the strategic importance of controlling supply chains.”
Opting to replace cobalt with iron, pure nickel, or nickel-magnesium mixes, however, ignores conventional wisdom surrounding the direction of next-gen battery tech, Mell said.
“Despite years of trying to remove cobalt from batteries, it has proven to be a formidable challenge owing to its importance in keeping batteries safe and extending the life of cells,” he said. “Battery manufacturers have instead opted to lower the amount of cobalt in a cell to decrease the cost while preserving the integrity of the battery. This is the battery evolution trend almost all market experts are predicting, with the nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) cathode remaining the dominant chemistry.”
First Cobalt owns the only permitted cobalt refinery in North America, Power Materials notes.
“We remain steadfast in our belief that cobalt will continue to be an essential component in nickel-rich batteries,” Mell said. “The timeline from concept to commercialization of any new battery technology will take ten or more years. We note recent market commentary on Tesla having concluded a long-term cobalt supply deal, which would be at odds with today's pronouncements. Most of Tesla's competitors are developing their electrification plans on the basis of NCM battery technologies.”
Frontier Lithium appoints Mancal executive as director
Sudbury, Ontario’s Frontier Lithium has named Mancal Corporation president and CEO Stephen Letwin to its board of directors, Power Materials reports.
"We welcome Mr. Letwin to Frontier's Board of Directors. He is a grounded person and an appreciable addition with over 30 years of impressive operating and financial experience in the resource industry," said company hair Reginald Walker in a statement. "We are looking forward to working with Steve as he will significantly aid Frontier as we work toward building a fully integrated lithium mining and chemical company."
Letwin was appointed president and CEO of Mancal in February. Mancal holds investments in coal, oil and gas, railroad interests, and ranching.
"I am thrilled to be joining Frontier Lithium's board of directors and recognize the company's quality lithium assets,” said Letwin. “I am enthused about its potential to supply critical materials required by clean tech and an emerging global energy transition. This is an exciting time."
California to phase out gas vehicles by 2035
California Governor Gavin Newsom has declared via executive order that all new passenger cars and trucks sold in the state by 2035 must be zero-emission vehicles, according to a government release.
“This is the most impactful step our state can take to fight climate change,” said Governor Newsom. “For too many decades, we have allowed cars to pollute the air that our children and families breathe. Californians shouldn’t have to worry if our cars are giving our kids asthma. Our cars shouldn’t make wildfires worse – and create more days filled with smoky air. Cars shouldn’t melt glaciers or raise sea levels threatening our cherished beaches and coastlines.”
The mandate comes bundled with an order requiring state agencies and private operators “...to accelerate deployment of affordable fueling and charging options,” the release states.
It will not be illegal to own or sell gasoline-powered vehicles in the used car market, Power Materials understands.
“By the time the new rule goes into effect, zero-emission vehicles will almost certainly be cheaper and better than the traditional fossil fuel powered cars,” the release states. “The upfront cost of electric vehicles are projected to reach parity with conventional vehicles in just a matter of years, and the cost of owning the car – both in maintenance and how much it costs to power the car mile for mile – is far less than a fossil fuel burning vehicle.”
Trump administration backs rare earth development from coal
The US government plans to make $122 million available for research into extracting rare earth elements from coal, Power Materials gleans from a government release.
The funding is a part of the Carbon Ore, Rare Earths and Critical Minerals (CORE-CM) Initiative, sponsored by the Office of Fossil Energy within the US Department of Energy.
“The Trump Administration is committed to developing technological solutions to extract rare earth elements, critical minerals, and other valuable products from our nation’s abundant coal reserves,” said Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette. “These projects have an important role; they will help develop a viable domestic supply of these resources while creating new market opportunities for coal.”
Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy Steven Winberg described CORE-CM as a chance to “realize the full potential for carbon ores and critical minerals within US basins.”
Canadian energy minister hosts Alberta strategic meeting at lithium developer
Canada’s Energy Minister Sonya Savage met with a panel of metals and mining experts September 23 at lithium developer E3 Metals’ Calgary, Alberta, facility to discuss the future of the province’s mineral resources, Power Materials reports.
The five-member panel “...will help government unlock the province’s vast mineral potential, including lithium,” according to a meeting-day release from E3.
"We are very happy to host the Minister of Energy at our offices today. This announcement solidifies the province's commitment for the development of critical minerals,” said E3 CEO Chris Doornbos. “E3 Metals is on the forefront of lithium development in Alberta, a critical mineral that can be produced on the backbone of the oil industry. Alberta has a skilled energy labour force already in place that is well positioned to support an emerging minerals sector.”
Savage said the meeting and action plans derived from it “...will place Alberta at the cutting edge of critical mineral exploration and development. Doing so will encourage investment and create jobs for Albertans, supporting our long-term economic recovery."
E3 is in the midst of developing a 6.7 million tonne/year lithium carbonate resource in south-central Alberta. It is also partnering on a direct lithium extraction project with Livent Corporation.