Australian-based battery materials company Liontown Resources has entered into a binding sales and purchase agreement with electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla for the supply of spodumene concentrate.
The Agreement is for the supply of up to 150,000 dry metric tonnes (DMT) per annum of spodumene concentrate to be produced at Liontown’s Kathleen Valley Lithium Project in Western Australia and is expected to commence in 2024.
Located 680km northeast of Perth, Kathleen Valley is a new, globally significant, lithium development project underpinned by a world-class lithium deposit in Western Australia’s premier mining district.
Kathleen Valley is forecast to initially produce ~500ktpa of spodumene concentrate before expanding to ~700ktpa over its initial ~23-year mine life.
Commenting on the Agreement with Tesla, Liontown’s Managing Director and CEO, Tony Ottaviano, said it is the second offtake arrangement secured for Kathleen Valley – following the foundational offtake arrangement with LG Energy Solutions – and means that more than half of Liontown’s planned production is now covered by long-term agreements.
“Securing our second offtake sales agreement is another fantastic milestone for Liontown towards the development of the Kathleen Valley Lithium Project, and we are absolutely delighted to have signed this agreement with leading EV manufacturer, Tesla,” Mr Ottaviano said.
“Tesla is a global leader and innovator in electric vehicles and having it sign up to become a significant customer is a tremendous achievement and another huge vote of confidence in the quality of the Kathleen Valley Project.
“This means that we now have two of the premier companies in the global lithium-ion battery and EV space signed up as foundational customers, marking a significant step towards realising our ambition to become a globally significant provider of battery materials for the clean energy market.
“We look forward to working with Tesla as long-term partners for many years to come.”
