Page 155 - CW E-Magazine (22-10-2024)

News from Abroad

MEGA ACQUISITION
Rio Tinto to buy Arcadium Lithium for $6.7-bn

Global metal and mining giant, Rio
Tinto has agreed to acquire US-based
Arcadium Lithium in a transaction
worth $6.7-bn. Rio said it would pay
$5.85 per share in cash for Arcadium,
an almost 90% premium to its closing
price of $3.08 per share on October 4.

The deal is expected to make Rio
the world’s third largest miner of lithium,
used extensively in electric vehicle
(EV) batteries.

Already the world’s largest producer
of iron ore, Rio is transforming itself
into a processor of high end, low pany expects a shortfall in supply, with revenue within the next decade by sup-
carbon raw materials essential for the a more than 10% compound annual plying lithium for EV batteries in hours
energy transition. The market is currently growth rate in demand through to 2040, or days, not months or longer as with
oversupplied with lithium, but CEO boosted by EVs and energy storage. existing large, water-intensive evapora-
Mr. Jakob Stausholm said Rio is con- tion ponds and open pit mines.
fident that long-term demand will be Rio intends to fold its existing lithium
strong. Arcadium has leading capabi- assets into the new business to ensure While DLE technologies vary, they
lities in lithium chemicals manufactur- growth and keep Arcadium’s staff. Rio are comparable to filtration used by
ing and extraction processes, including had been banking on its huge Jadar common household water softeners and
hard-rock mining, conventional brine project in Serbia to supply much of aim to extract about 90% or more of the
extraction and direct lithium extraction Europe’s lithium needs but that could lithium from brines, compared to about
(DLE). Arcadium’s current lithium pro- take at least two years to secure per- 50% using ponds. No one has launched
duction capacity across a range of pro- mits, and the miner is facing strong lo- a commercial DLE operation without
ducts including lithium hydroxide and cal opposition to its plans. ponds, although multiple companies
lithium carbonate is 75,000-tpa lithium are racing to be first.
carbonate equivalent, with expansion Arcadium’s mix of active mines,
plans in place to more than double lithium deposits filled with decades of Arcadium, through a predecessor
capacity by the end of 2028. supply, and some of the industry’s most company, was the first to develop an
advanced processing facilities would early version of a DLE technology
Rio would gain access to lithium complement Rio’s output of copper, in the 1990s at an Argentina lithium
mines, processing facilities and depo- iron ore and other critical minerals. brine site that is still operational today.
sits in Argentina, Australia, Canada and While that site uses ponds in tandem
the US to fuel decades of growth, as ‘DLE is the real prize’ with DLE, Arcadium’s decades-long
well as customers that include Tesla, Arcadium’s expertise in DLE is the experience with the technology makes
BMW and General Motors. real prize for Rio, according to market it a tantalising prize for Rio as it aims
analysts, and vaults it into contention to develop lithium deposits in Chile,
Lithium prices have floundered due with Eramet, Sunresin, ExxonMobil where officials are phasing out ponds
to Chinese oversupply and a slowdown and others aiming to make the techno- and requiring DLE, and elsewhere.
in EV sales, resulting in miners of the logy commonplace in coming years. Arcadium’s Argentina DLE operations
metal emerging as attractive takeover are located near a DLE project that Rio
targets. Mr. Stausholm told investors The DLE industry is expected to paid $825-mn for in 2022, though that
that by the end of the decade the com- grow to more than $10-bn in annual project has yet to produce lithium.

Chemical Weekly October 22, 2024 155

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