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1 Market overview
1.1 Definition and scope of the market
Lithium is an alkaline metal, often called "white gold". It is present in the earth's crust and in the oceans. This metal is never found in its native state (in metallic form), but is present in dissolved form. Today, lithium is mainly used in the manufacture of electric batteries. It is indeed present in cell phones, computers, tablets etc.. But it is mainly electric car batteries that drive the demand (more than half of the world demand). It is therefore one of the strategic materials of the energy transition.
Worldwide, lithium production is concentrated in 4 countries: Australia, Chile, China and Argentina, which share 95% of production. Similarly, 5 companies account for nearly 80% of global production. In 2021, the price of lithium has increased fivefold. However, the financial market for lithium can be considered opaque. Indeed, there is currently no official financial market for lithium.
Moreover, according to the International Energy Agency, demand will increase 40-fold by 2040.
In France, the government launched a call for projects in January 2022 as part of the France 2030 plan to extract and/or refine lithium as well as cobalt and nickel. The aim is to reduce dependence on these raw materials as much as possible. All the more so as the national territory has lithium reserves, notably in Alsace and in the Massif Central. In total, the geological and mining research bureau has identified 41 sources of lithium in France.
Nevertheless, the potential future French production could come up against the ecological impact of the extraction and refining of this metal.
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Latest news
France's Arverne dreams of becoming a future energy major - 19/09/2023
- Geothermal and lithium specialist to raise more than 150 million at IPO.
- Founded in 2018 by Pierre Brossollet, Arverne Group aims to produce next-generation energy: Geothermal energy
- This heat will be produced by drawing it from a depth of up to 200 meters.
- An integrated operator, from exploration, drilling and plant construction, to the production of these resources and the sale of calories or lithium, Arverne Group will be in charge of the entire process
- Last year's sales of 10 million euros came from its drilling activity, which it carries out on behalf of others.
- Arverne Group holds a dozen exclusive exploration permits in the Grand Est, Aquitaine and Auvergne regions of France
- Between 2025 and 2027, sales will be in the hundreds of millions of euros
- Arverne is targeting 30,000 tonnes of lithium a year, or a third of the annual demand of French battery factories.
Imerys: Europe's lithium giant. - 30/06/2023
- Collaboration between Imerys 80% and British Lithium 20% to mine the UK's largest lithium deposit at St Austell
- . Imerys will become Europe's leading lithium producer, with over 20% of European production capacity expected by 2030.
- A 50 kWh battery for a medium-sized car requires around 40 kg of lithium.
- Demand for lithium in Europe is set to rise from 80,000 tonnes in 2022 to 300,000 tonnes in 2030.
- The UK project plans to produce 20,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent per year, enough to power 500,000 vehicles a year.
- Cornwall's lithium deposit is estimated at 161 million tonnes of lithium oxide, giving the mine an estimated life of over thirty years.
- Annual production from the new mine could generate sales of 800 million euros
- In addition, the Imerys project in Auvergne is scheduled to be operational in 2028, with plans to extract 34,000 tonnes of lithium hydroxide per year, enough to equip 700,000 electric vehicles per year.
Imerys to mine UK's largest lithium deposit with British Lithium - 29/06/2023
- Shareholding in the joint venture: Imerys holds 80% and British Lithium 20%.
- Location of lithium deposit: Cornwall, in the south-west of the UK.
- Objective: to become the UK's leading integrated producer of lithium carbonate for batteries.
Arverne Group floats on the stock market to accelerate geothermal and lithium development - 18/06/2023
- Financing secured by Arverne Group: 130 million euros.
- Start of geothermal production: 2025.
- Start of lithium production: 2027.
- Low-carbon lithium mining and refining planned for 2030: 30,000 tonnes per year.
- Geothermal heat production scheduled for 2030: 4.8 TWh.
- Estimated sales for 2027: between 200 and 350 million euros.
- Estimated sales for 2030: between 800 million and 1.15 billion euros.
- Share of French lithium requirements covered by Arverne Group sites: 30 to 35%.
Rising interest rates weigh on the construction market in the US and Europe - 03/05/2023
- Construction market share of Imerys sales: around 40%
- Automotive market share of Imerys sales: 7%
- The Group is in negotiations for the sale of Calderys (HTS) Redeployment towards lithium and green mobility
Imerys fine-tunes its "responsible "r lithium mine plan - 28/04/2023
- 4.3 billion euros: Imerys sales in 2022.
- 40 drillings: number of core samples planned for 2023 in Imerys' third exploration campaign.
- 30,000 tonnes: quantity of kaolin extracted per year on the "kaolins de Beauvoir" site.
- 34,000 tonnes of lithium hydroxide: Imerys' ambition for annual production over a quarter century.
- 1 million tonnes of lithium oxide: estimated current reserves.
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