GLOBAL ELECTRIC CAR COMPANY COULD SOURCE COBALT FROM SASKATCHEWAN Facility
posted on
Apr 04, 2014 02:24PM
A natural resource company with interests in several mineral deposits and a number of exploration projects in Canada
Fortune Minerals Ltd. is pleased with recent reports that stated Tesla Motors Inc. plans to source its critical raw materials as close as possible to its planned $5-billion lithium-ion battery gigafactory in the southwest United States, with a preference for North America suppliers to minimize environmental impacts and material costs.
Fortune's proposed refinery near Saskatoon in Western Canada, the Saskatchewan metals processing plant (SMPP), will be constructed in the community of Langham, and will stand out as a North American facility dedicated to the production of cobalt chemicals needed to manufacture rechargeable batteries used in electric vehicles, such as Tesla's, as well as in portable electronic devices. The Tesla Model S uses nickel-cobalt-aluminum cathode chemistry from Panasonic containing 9 per cent cobalt by weight. Lithium-ion batteries using other cathode chemistries can contain up to 60 per cent cobalt by weight.
The SMPP will also produce gold, bismuth metals and chemicals, and byproduct copper. Notably, the bismuth market is experiencing significant demand growth as a non-toxic, environmentally safe replacement for lead in a number of products, including automotive anti-corrosion coatings, windshield frits, pearlescent paints and electronic solders. Fortune envisions that the SMPP could also be expanded to include battery and metal recycling as a future business opportunity in Langham.
Tesla spokesperson, Liz Jarvis-Shean, has noted that the electric car manufacturer will look for North American suppliers of cobalt and other materials needed to "establish a supply chain that is local and focused on minimizing environmental impact." She further commented: "One of the key reasons is to more completely consider the total environmental impact of the supply chain while significantly reducing battery cost. Our goal is to build batteries with the lowest environmental impact possible and that necessitates looking at where the raw materials come from, and how much impact there was in mining, processing and transporting them."
"Tesla's approach is a positive development for the future of our SMPP," said Mike Romaniuk, Fortune's vice-president, operations, and chief operating officer. "Our Nico gold-cobalt-bismuth copper project, comprised of a mine and mill in the Northwest Territories, and the processing facility in Saskatchewan, will make us a vertically integrated North American supplier of the cobalt chemicals needed by battery manufacturers like Tesla."
Cobalt is a critical metal used in a number of important metallurgical and chemical products, but susceptible to supply concerns with more than 60 per cent of mine production currently sourced from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. China is currently responsible for approximately 40 per cent of refined cobalt production, primarily from DRC material.
"Our company has been very aware of the pending proliferation of electric vehicle use. It is gratifying to hear Tesla's recent announcement confirming Fortune's NAFTA [North American Free Trade Agreement] advantage as a future Canadian supplier of the cobalt chemicals required by the automotive and rechargeable battery industries", said Mr. Romaniuk. "We expect the economic impact of this demand to create over 100 new jobs in surrounding communities and millions in other spin-off benefits for the area."
Fortune has already received its environmental assessment approvals for the Nico mine and concentrator in the Northwest Territories, as well as the refinery in Saskatchewan. Earlier this week, the company announced the results of an updated feasibility study for the project by Micon International Ltd. (see Fortune news release dated April 2, 2014) that is being used to advance negotiations with potential strategic partners and their banks. The development would make the company very well positioned to become a reliable North American source of cobalt and bismuth to the automotive industry with a very valuable gold co-product.
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