Battery manufacturer LG Energy Solution has signed an offtake agreement with Wesfarmers Chemicals, Energy and Fertilizers (WesCEF) for lithium concentrate.

Under the agreement, WesCEF will supply LG Energy Solution with up to 85,000 tons of lithium concentrate, which could be used to produce around 11,000 tons of lithium hydroxide, a cathode raw material. WesCEF’s lithium hydroxide will be produced from the Mt. Holland lithium project in Western Australia, which expects to start up in the first half of 2025.

The project has secured over AUD 2 billion from its joint venture partners WesCEF and Chilean mining company Sociedad Química y Minera (SQM). Covalent Lithium will act as the manager. As part of its efforts to further enhance its lithium supply chain, LG Energy Solution has also secured a partnership with SQM. In this new contract, which replaces a previous agreement, the offtake amount has nearly tripled from the remaining contract volume (36,000 tons) to 100,000 tons over seven years.

“Partnering with major suppliers with great potentials like WesCEF, we will ensure stable procurement of key raw materials, thereby delivering advanced battery technologies at competitive prices,” said Kang Yeol Lee, Senior Vice President of Procurement Center at LG Energy Solution.

Source: LG Energy Solution