Lithium News
Tesla switches on world’s biggest lithium-ion battery
Musk delivers on promise to South Australia to build storage solution within 100 days
The world’s biggest lithium-ion battery has begun dispatching power into Australia’s energy grid, delivering on an audacious promise by Tesla’s Elon Musk to build the storage solution within 100 days or provide it for free.
Tesla’s Powerpack battery system is connected to a wind farm in South Australia and has the capacity to supply 30,000 homes for one hour, which is three times as powerful as any other batteries currently installed. It has been subsidised by the state government, which is building greater resilience into its power network following blackouts last year that sparked a nationwide debate about the reliability of renewable energy.
“The completion of the world’s largest lithium-ion battery in record time shows that a sustainable, effective energy solution is possible,” Tesla said in a statement at the battery’s official launch on Friday. It marks the latest phase of a lithium-ion battery revolution, which advocates say is transforming the world’s energy systems by enabling the integration of low-cost solar and wind power into national grids.
But the technology has faced criticism in Australia, where a dispute between the government and the opposition over the future of coal generation and the reliability of renewables has plunged energy policy into disarray. Tesla founder Elon Musk had promised to build the battery within 100 days or do it for free © AFP The Tesla battery, which is estimated to have cost A$50m (US$38m) to build, is at the forefront of the state government’s efforts to convince voters that its push to provide half the state’s electricity from renewables by 2025 has not left them vulnerable to blackouts.
South Australia met its goal this year but only after a storm in 2016 knocked out the entire state’s electricity supply, prompting Australia’s prime minister Malcolm Turnbull to blame the state government’s renewable energy policy, which he described as “ideology and idiocy in equal measure”. “If you want it to replace coal-fired power with lots of renewables, it would dawn on you, you would think, with a moment’s thought, that the sun doesn’t shine all the time,” he said. In October, Mr Turnbull’s government published a National Energy Guarantee policy, which aims to build greater resilience into the energy grid by ditching a national green energy target and providing a lifeline for coal-fired power stations.
But so far state governments have refused to sign up for the federal plan, leaving Australia without a co-ordinated energy or climate change policy. Jay Weatherill, South Australia’s premier, is leading the state’s opposition to the national strategy, saying it would strangle investment in solar and wind energy and is designed to prop up polluting coal power stations. He says the 2016 blackouts in South Australia were caused by severe weather and were not a renewable energy event.
The blackouts — which cost businesses A$367m, according to business lobby groups — have spurred the Labor-led state government to allocate A$550m to a suite of energy reliability projects. These include building a gas fired power plant, additional incentives to attract more gas for use in South Australia, new government powers to direct operators to provide energy and the Tesla battery.
Tesla’s battery is connected to the Hornsdale wind farm, which has 99 turbines with a generation capacity of 315MW. It can provide roughly 129MW hours of power for the national grid when shortfalls emerge at peak times during summer or during severe weather events. “The battery will bring essential grid stability by providing a fast injection of power. But it will not solve the problem of blackouts on its own,” said Franck Woitiez, managing director of Neoen Australia, which owns the Hornsdale wind farm and the battery.
Although the battery needs to be used in conjunction with the other reliability solutions, Mr Woitiez rejects the federal government’s insistence that coal should remain a key part of Australia’s energy mix. “Coal is a thing of the past. In 2017 we are showing that the energy transition is happening. Battery costs are falling and it is now cheaper to build renewables than new coal plants.”
Booming Lithium Sector Exploding As Demand Grows At An Unstoppable Speed
We’ve spent a lot of time analysing the Lithium space, and it’s the junior players that are becoming the next big trend; the most promising lithium comes from South America’s ‘Lithium Triangle’.
Our research indicates this company: NRG Metals Inc. (OTCQB: NRGMF TSX: NGZ), a junior resource company that’s advancing lithium interests in South America, may be set for a major breakthrough.
Lithium, as most investors know by now, is the white powder that is crucial to powering the future in the form of Lithium-ion batteries. The material is in high demand thanks to automakers like Tesla and others who are looking to double or even triple EV (Electric Vehicle) production over the next few years.
In fact, majors like Tesla and Volkswagen will do a lot more than just double or ripple in next few years because they’re starting from a small base. Tesla hopes to sell 500k in 2018 and 1 M EVs in 2020. Volkswagen expect 2-3 million sales in 2025. [1]
In March of 2016, Elon Musk (Tesla’s CEO) stated, “In order to produce half a million cars a year… we would basically need to absorb the entire world’s lithium- ion production.” [2]
The Wall Street Journal backed this too stating, “Tesla and other electric-vehicle makers are swallowing up lithium for its use in lithium-ion batteries that power electric cars.”
Goldman Sachs has taken things even further in their detailed report on Lithium declaring that lithium is the “new gasoline” saying “We think Lithium ion batteries will help fuel a dramatic increase in electric vehicle penetration,” according to Bob Koort, head of Industrials and Materials research, Goldman Sachs Research. [3]
You Could Invest In a virtually Undiscovered Lithium Mining Stock at Pennies Per Share. See Our Thoughts:
Big Lithium Players Up Significantly – 63% Plus Returns This Year!
The result is that large lithium players are up on demand. Of our surveyed group, our leading two selections had a three year performance for investors of 64.59% and 50.82% respectively.
Take note: the leading lithium producers are on the ground in South America – the real hot spot for lithium production.
Leading Small Lithium Players Show Bigger Gains – 340%+ Since Making Major Lithium Advances.
We sifted through the field and came across three junior lithium players whose price increased as much as 529% + since announcing significant advances in lithium deals, and one small lithium company (NRG Metals) that has made the advances, but has not been impacted (yet). We think that stock looks like an easy double or triple, at least.
We sampled a group of early participants in lithium. These are junior exploration or mining companies advancing lithium projects. They all saw major gains after structuring financing and advancing interests in lithium:
Lithium X – 529% gain – after announcing acquisitions next to Albemarle Corp. (the world’s leading producer) and advancing two projects in Argentina.
Nemaska Lithium – 329% gain – after announcing capital raises and making headway on lithium plant operations in Quebec.
Millennial Lithium – 345% gain – after entering reaching option agreements on Argentinean lithium operations and capital structuring.
Between all three, that’s an average gain of over 400%.
We used this model an applied it to identify a similar player with the same profile at the pre-discovery stage: NRG Metals Inc.
NRG Metals Inc. Is On The Ground in South America
Argentina is one of the major lithium producing countries in the world and has significant additional potential. It contains a number of mineralized salars or salt fields including the Hombre Muerto and Salar Olaroz properties producing lithium. Also, it is a country with a mining history.
NRG is a Canadian based mining company, but its lithium interests are in Argentina. The company’s projects are strategically located within the Lithium Triangle, in close proximity to one of the largest known lithium deposits in Argentina, and within the Puna Region, an elevated plateau, which lies on the eastern side of the Andes Mountains.
We like the fact that it’s a Canadian mining explorer and the fact that they have attracted strong management that hail from well-known Argentinean lithium mining companies. In fact, C.O.O. Jose de Castro was the man responsible for identifying and building the world’s most recent lithium brine project, the Salar de Olaroz Lithium Facility, for Orocobre. Also, Project Manager Fernando Villarroel has a solid background in Argentine lithium, and his experience includes designing the pilot plant for Lithium Americas. Often in this business, management above the ground is as important as what lies beneath the ground. We will get to that point next.
Two Ways to Win
Exploration stage companies live and die on their drill results, and as the old saying goes, “two shots are better than one “.
NRG Metals Inc. is advancing two lithium brine projects in the heart of this key Argentinian region. “Its big exploration shot“ is the 29,000 hectare Salar Escondido lithium project which just received drilling approval from the Province of Catamarca.
To date, NRG has completed sampling work at surface that returned anomalous lithium values. More importantly, they completed a Vertical Electric Sounding geophysical program at surface, which identified a zone deeper down which appears to be a brine zone. That important “highly conductive with low resistivity zone, “ is depicted on the cross sectional below…
V.E.S. is a proven technology that measures the resistivity of zones, and has helped discover many lithium deposits in South America. In short, it identifies potential brine zones that are the host for lithium deposits. The next stage here is to drill up to six test wells to confirm the expectation that the conductive zone within this large basin contains lithium. NRG has now signed off a drill contract and expects to be drilling in the next two weeks.
Location, Location, Location
The Hombre Muerto North lithium project sits right beside FMC’s lithium producing Fenix Mine, and Galaxy Resources’ Sal de Vida Lithium Project, both in the province of Salta. The NRG land package is currently 3,287 hectares, and can likely become significantly larger. Location here is everything as the Hombre Muerto Salar is one of the most explored in Argentina. Work by Galaxy Resources, a big Australian lithium player right next door, has confirmed that the higher grade areas of the salar are trending north, towards the NRG land package. A drill hole released by Galaxy in this area returned lithium values from 564 mg/L Li to 895 mg/L Li, and that hole is only 750 meters south of the NRG claim border.
Recent sampling on the NRG claim blocks returned even higher lithium values. So based on the available data, NRG has applied for permission to drill up to six exploration test wells, six pumping wells, and complete initial evaporation test pond construction. This should be easy work with potentially really good results. They should get permission to drill shortly.
There is a lot more going on behind the scenes for NRG, but these two projects show a balanced company approach. Drill both a high risk high reward exploration shot, and also balance the risk with work within a known exploration area. There should be very interesting news flow from NRG in the immediate future.
Stocks In This Space Have Seen Returns of 10x, 20x or more! – See Our Recommendation
FEATURE STOCK: FOR COMPARISON
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Lithium Winners: Too Late To Capture Big Gains But Still Good to Study
These stocks represent some of the early leaders who have already experienced a major lift from the rise in lithium. They are not likely to see the kind of appreciation that our feature company could produce, but they are solid examples of just how much profit the lithium market is already yielding.
Our Recommendation: NRG Metals Gets Our Highest BUY Rating
One simple way to play this market now: get in on the junior mining companies looking to make new lithium discoveries, right now. In other words, go to the source. That makes South American, especially Argentina, an obvious choice.
We look for leverage, like 10 to 1, 20 to 1 or better on our speculative selections. For those kind of massive returns, you need to look at the early stage mining business with the focus on potential production of a viable resource. That’s why we’re zeroing on Argentina and NRG Metals.
This company has all earmarks of a future lithium producer and they’re moving fast to advance lithium interests. Here’s what we’ve already seen NRG Metals achieve:
- Acquired two Argentinean projects in close proximity to leading global lithium producers FMC Corp. and billion A$ market cap developer – Galaxy Resources.
- Put over $1.5 million CDN financing in place for the exploration drilling of the Salar Escondido project to prove up potential lithium resources.
- Obtained drill permits to advance exploration on Salar Escondido.
- Added a land package in the producing Hombre Muerto salar, in the middle of two of the largest players in the industry.
- Filed for drill permits for the Hombre Muerto North lithium project
All of this has taken place in a short time period since late 2016. In addition, the Company upgraded to the OTC Markets QB board, giving level two quotes, and a high level of corporate transparency. Word is just getting out and NRG Metals has yet to realize the kind of market attention that has led to huge increases in other small lithium resource companies’ share prices.
A well timed investment of $6,253 Investment Would Have Given You over $33,078
Others have already cashed in on this trend. For instance, if you had sunk just $6,253 in the three stocks mentioned stock prior to their respective news announcing acquisitions and advances in lithium projects, that investment would be worth over $33,078.
Our recommendation is to position now, while the market is looking for direction. Consider NRG Metals (OTCQB: NRGMF / TSX-V: NGZ) at its current undiscovered stage. Then follow the news and advances as they break by joining their email list at https://www.nrgmetalsinc.com.
Just remember that those who waited on companies like Lithium X, Millennial, and Nemaska because they were smaller, or early stage exploration stage companies missed out on some of the biggest movers within the lithium sector.
You may hear a lot of buzz about the lithium market suggesting that the supply imbalance is just the result another “bubble”. We disagree. The market shift is far too substantial for this to be a fad or singular spike based on speculative demand.
If you believe a single word that Elon Musk, the visionary head of Tesla has offered about the future of electric power, you have to agree that lithium is here for the long term and valued suppliers to the industry stand to make a fortune.
We believe early investors in companies looking to take the lead should reap the greatest rewards.
Important Note *
As mentioned, NRG Metals is planning a drilling program to substantiate its lithium resources. News, such as further positive lithium drill results or increased purity, could have a significant impact on its share price.
American News Group
Editorial Staff
Sources
- Vox.com – https://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/2017/9/13/16293258/ev-revolution
- Wall Street Journal – https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-lithium-defied-the-global-commodities-rout-1462450790
- Goldman Sachs – https://www.goldmansachs.com/our-thinking/pages/what-if-i-told-you-full/index.html?playlist=0&video=0&videoId=143955
- NRG Metals Inc. – https://www.nrgmetalsinc.com/
- Fool.com – https://fool.com
- Lithium X Energy Corp. – https://www.lithium-x.com/
- Nemaska Lithium Inc. – https://www.nemaskalithium.com/en/
- Millennial Lithium Corp. – https://millenniallithium.com/
Disclaimer
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Protected: $90 Billion In Investments Into EVs & Batteries Now Pledged By Global Auto Manufacturers
Electric-car start-up Lucid Motors moves to bigger headquarters in Tesla’s backyard
Electric-car start-up Lucid Motors is doubling the size of its offices and is moving into Tesla ‘s neighborhood.
The company, which is not yet selling any cars, is moving from its current headquarters in Menlo Park, California, to a new facility in the nearby city of Newark.
Lucid Motors announced the move on its blog on Monday.
The new offices will be located near Lucid’s prototype design shop, Lucid said.
Newark borders Fremont, where Tesla builds its cars.
Lucid revealed its first planned production model, the Lucid Air, at a private event in 2016. The car made its auto show debut at the New York International Auto Show in April. The electric sedan is a shot across the bow at Tesla. Lucid says the car is smaller than a Tesla Model S but offers as much interior space as a large Mercedes S-class sedan.
Lucid’s chief technology officer is Peter Rawlinson, who had formerly been a Tesla vice president and chief engineer on the Model S. Despite the fact that the Lucid Air is billed as a high-performance luxury electric sedan, Rawlinson has said he thinks the company’s true competitors are the high-end German automakers.
Those companies, such as Audi , Mercedes and BMW , are all working on their own electric cars that would also conceivably compete with Tesla.
There have been some reports in 2017 that Lucid has fielded offers from potential buyers, including Ford , according to Recode.
