Eye on Lithium: EV makers team up, 'cut out the middleman' to deal with rising battery costs

S&P says rising battery costs will lead automakers to explore tie-ups and sharing production platforms
Discovery Alaska finds widespread lithium in historical Coal Creek drill core
Green Technology Metals’ Seymour project assays include 10.5m at 1.77% Li2O from 123.2m

All your ASX lithium news for Thursday, May 19.

The price of raw materials used in batteries for EVs is rising, and battery suppliers are seeking to shield their profitability from the spike in lithium, cobalt, and nickel.

Prices of cathode materials more than doubled in the past 12 months to March 2022, and account for 60-70% of the cost of battery packs.

“The compound annual growth rate in battery demand is meanwhile seen at 30%-40% from 2022 to 2025,” S&P Global Ratings said in a report.

And the increase cost of raw materials means electric vehicle (EV) makers will be spending more on their battery supply chains – which may change the way they do business.

“On one hand, they will explore more tie-ups; and on the other, they’ll seek to widen their supplier networks and potentially cut out the middleman by directly entering the upstream supply chain,” S&P said.

“And as electric vehicles increase their presence in the market, this effort to control costs will also involve a willingness to explore different technology options over the next two years.”

EV makers team up for scale and cost savings

S&P reckons that automakers will opt for tie-ups to achieve economies of scale, as small-scale production is a key reason for the low profitability of EV businesses.

“To improve production efficiency, more automakers are sharing their EV production platforms,” the report said.

“Over 2023-2028, Ford Motor Co. plans to produce two EV models, with a projected volume of up to 1.2 million units, for the European market based on Volkswagen’s modular electric toolkit platform.

“General Motors Co. and Honda Motor Co. Ltd. announced in April 2022 to jointly develop affordable compact EVs, which are expected to go on sale in North America from 2027.”

EV makers are also expected to take a “stricter stance” on passing on costs, as well as seeking further cooperation with upstream players.

“China’s Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd. and LG Chem Ltd.—the world’s No. 1 and No. 2 EV battery makers respectively—have both signed billion-dollar deals with Indonesian counterparties for domestic investment to build mines-to-manufacturing supply chains over the next few years,” S&P said.

Here’s how ASX lithium stocks were tracking today:

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Code	Company	Price	% Month	% Week	% Today	Market Cap
ALY	Alchemy Resource Ltd	0.03	67%	43%	15%	$24,779,925.48
WCN	White Cliff Min Ltd	0.022	-33%	5%	10%	$13,072,067.24
MMG	Monger Gold Ltd	0.32	8%	-11%	8%	$7,375,000.00
DAF	Discovery Alaska Ltd	0.045	13%	10%	7%	$9,375,857.32
LRV	Larvotto Resources	0.305	13%	-5%	7%	$11,744,137.50
RAS	Ragusa Minerals Ltd	0.08	-11%	14%	7%	$9,424,337.25
KZR	Kalamazoo Resources	0.345	-19%	5%	6%	$47,188,171.55
AX8	Accelerate Resources	0.039	-41%	0%	5%	$9,747,979.26
EPM	Eclipse Metals	0.027	-27%	4%	4%	$49,949,286.74
KAI	Kairos Minerals Ltd	0.028	-10%	8%	4%	$52,976,524.26
QPM	Queensland Pacific	0.165	-13%	14%	3%	$246,898,100.96
IMI	Infinitymining	0.175	-5%	-3%	3%	$9,775,000.00
SCN	Scorpion Minerals	0.093	18%	9%	2%	$30,196,638.47
RDT	Red Dirt Metals Ltd	0.5	-17%	12%	2%	$147,741,272.49
LPD	Lepidico Ltd	0.0285	-27%	2%	2%	$179,469,261.02
LIS	Lisenergylimited	0.6	-20%	2%	2%	$97,889,370.33
ZNC	Zenith Minerals Ltd	0.355	-11%	0%	1%	$120,366,454.25
AKE	Allkem Limited	12.55	-7%	12%	1%	$7,926,090,008.98
1MC	Morella Corporation	0.028	-18%	8%	0%	$144,933,991.61
AML	Aeon Metals Ltd.	0.038	-46%	0%	0%	$35,824,837.74
AVZ	AVZ Minerals Ltd	0.78	-34%	0%	0%	$2,752,409,203.44
RLC	Reedy Lagoon Corp.	0.026	-21%	0%	0%	$14,257,287.98
TKL	Traka Resources	0.008	-20%	-11%	0%	$5,510,196.49
BMM	Balkanminingandmin	0.27	-27%	-13%	0%	$8,842,500.00
DTM	Dart Mining NL	0.079	-4%	30%	0%	$9,834,783.47
EMS	Eastern Metals	0.175	-10%	13%	0%	$6,230,000.00
FG1	Flynngold	0.15	-12%	0%	0%	$9,609,157.50
MMC	Mitremining	0.145	-24%	0%	0%	$3,927,339.50
SHH	Shree Minerals Ltd	0.01	-38%	0%	0%	$12,222,368.92
WML	Woomera Mining Ltd	0.021	-19%	5%	0%	$14,423,494.39
KGD	Kula Gold Limited	0.033	-30%	-20%	0%	$7,100,795.86
MTM	Mtmongerresources	0.145	-24%	-15%	0%	$5,257,704.79
AVW	Avira Resources Ltd	0.005	-17%	0%	0%	$10,593,950.00
BNR	Bulletin Res Ltd	0.18	-18%	13%	0%	$52,216,240.86
MQR	Marquee Resource Ltd	0.097	-22%	-1%	0%	$30,239,603.05
LSR	Lodestar Minerals	0.01	-38%	-9%	0%	$17,384,373.48
NWM	Norwest Minerals	0.045	-25%	-2%	0%	$8,127,332.42
AOA	Ausmon Resorces	0.009	-18%	0%	0%	$7,715,604.09
VKA	Viking Mines Ltd	0.009	-18%	-10%	0%	$9,227,325.88
SRI	Sipa Resources Ltd	0.04	-25%	0%	0%	$8,200,992.12
MNS	Magnis Energy Tech	0.4	-14%	-2%	0%	$386,594,131.60
MM1	Midasmineralsltd	0.31	-11%	17%	0%	$16,875,818.75
WMC	Wiluna Mining Corp	0.565	-39%	0%	0%	$119,392,943.93
GW1	Greenwing Resources	0.325	-24%	-13%	0%	$40,055,388.43
PLS	Pilbara Min Ltd	2.775	-6%	6%	-1%	$8,335,135,740.40
EMH	European Metals Hldg	0.99	-23%	-4%	-1%	$140,776,965.00
AZI	Altamin Limited	0.096	4%	-2%	-1%	$37,996,524.94
WR1	Winsome Resources	0.44	-11%	13%	-1%	$60,125,727.33
IGO	IGO Limited	11.12	-20%	-1%	-1%	$8,519,262,896.25
CRR	Critical Resources	0.083	0%	12%	-1%	$124,959,486.96
AGY	Argosy Minerals Ltd	0.395	-19%	3%	-1%	$541,902,728.80
A8G	Australasian Metals	0.365	-29%	-6%	-1%	$15,233,082.78
GSM	Golden State Mining	0.064	-30%	0%	-2%	$6,747,952.38
PSC	Prospect Res Ltd	0.955	10%	2%	-2%	$423,570,572.21
RIO	Rio Tinto Limited	107.1	-11%	1%	-2%	$40,410,597,056.04
GT1	Greentechnology	0.845	-12%	0%	-2%	$117,159,520.00
LRS	Latin Resources Ltd	0.1375	-31%	15%	-2%	$269,924,805.36
PNN	PepinNini Minerals	0.55	-35%	-10%	-2%	$34,407,679.04
ESS	Essential Metals Ltd	0.54	-2%	5%	-2%	$135,197,004.80
KTA	Krakatoa Resources	0.0805	-33%	-3%	-2%	$28,266,213.19
PLL	Piedmont Lithium Inc	0.78	-18%	8%	-2%	$419,418,786.00
MIN	Mineral Resources.	59.62	-4%	10%	-2%	$11,497,760,995.59
CXO	Core Lithium	1.2775	-7%	12%	-2%	$2,260,720,826.82
AM7	Arcadia Minerals	0.22	-19%	5%	-2%	$7,873,312.50
AOU	Auroch Minerals Ltd	0.088	-32%	-5%	-2%	$32,517,161.91
GL1	Global Lithium	1.72	-24%	5%	-2%	$279,308,930.56
CHR	Charger Metals	0.56	-26%	-2%	-3%	$18,734,095.13
VMC	Venus Metals Cor Ltd	0.17	-15%	-6%	-3%	$26,438,769.53
WC8	Wildcat Resources	0.034	-3%	17%	-3%	$22,584,545.45
FTL	Firetail Resources	0.315	-22%	-9%	-3%	$20,079,312.50
NMT	Neometals Ltd	1.3175	-25%	3%	-3%	$745,791,898.56
LPI	Lithium Pwr Int Ltd	0.585	-30%	-8%	-3%	$211,232,633.04
GLN	Galan Lithium Ltd	1.42	-29%	-6%	-3%	$447,467,062.14
VUL	Vulcan Energy	7.21	-20%	1%	-3%	$983,388,822.30
MRR	Minrex Resources Ltd	0.055	-26%	4%	-4%	$57,496,784.01
TON	Triton Min Ltd	0.027	-16%	-4%	-4%	$35,245,956.96
LKE	Lake Resources	1.445	-28%	-1%	-4%	$1,985,906,290.50
AS2	Askarimetalslimited	0.525	-23%	2%	-4%	$22,660,881.46
INF	Infinity Lithium	0.13	-21%	-10%	-4%	$56,001,974.54
ZEO	Zeotech Limited	0.052	-16%	2%	-4%	$82,345,435.38
M2R	Miramar	0.125	-32%	-4%	-4%	$8,306,030.85
NVA	Nova Minerals Ltd	0.615	-29%	-5%	-4%	$115,329,462.40
CAI	Calidus Resources	0.845	-17%	-5%	-4%	$354,021,367.04
ADV	Ardiden Ltd	0.012	-14%	9%	-4%	$33,354,191.95
ASN	Anson Resources Ltd	0.12	-17%	9%	-4%	$128,489,041.88
CZL	Cons Zinc Ltd	0.024	-20%	0%	-4%	$8,783,945.33
LTR	Liontown Resources	1.2525	-25%	1%	-4%	$2,860,853,883.39
MXR	Maximus Resources	0.07	-17%	-4%	-4%	$23,207,121.06
MLS	Metals Australia	0.11	-37%	22%	-4%	$50,025,281.29
SRZ	Stellar Resources	0.022	-27%	0%	-4%	$19,303,960.40
EVR	Ev Resources Ltd	0.043	-31%	8%	-4%	$41,669,283.20
LIT	Lithium Australia	0.085	-23%	-1%	-4%	$92,129,704.94
FRS	Forrestaniaresources	0.21	-39%	-26%	-5%	$6,181,736.88
TMB	Tambourahmetals	0.21	-22%	0%	-5%	$9,062,371.56
XTC	Xantippe Res Ltd	0.0105	-25%	5%	-5%	$84,513,625.89
TEM	Tempest Minerals	0.062	-38%	-7%	-5%	$32,792,988.09
INR	Ioneer Ltd	0.51	-28%	-2%	-5%	$1,118,845,189.70
AZL	Arizona Lithium Ltd	0.1525	-10%	9%	-5%	$357,235,073.92
EUR	European Lithium Ltd	0.08	-27%	1%	-5%	$116,164,745.42
RAG	Ragnar Metals Ltd	0.04	-15%	5%	-5%	$15,652,765.34
IPT	Impact Minerals	0.01	-26%	0%	-5%	$22,999,846.65
PAM	Pan Asia Metals	0.485	-12%	8%	-5%	$37,565,908.44
FFX	Firefinch Ltd	0.9025	-19%	0%	-5%	$1,122,181,059.95
EFE	Eastern Resources	0.038	-24%	0%	-5%	$39,777,465.24
DRE	Dreadnought Resources Ltd	0.038	-14%	0%	-5%	$113,547,342.04
TYX	Tyranna Res Ltd	0.0095	58%	58%	-5%	$13,123,606.67
STM	Sunstone Metals Ltd	0.055	-21%	-4%	-5%	$149,317,892.24
AUN	Aurumin	0.18	-10%	0%	-5%	$20,752,417.88
LRD	Lordresourceslimited	0.265	33%	-7%	-5%	$8,619,693.88
LEL	Lithenergy	1.17	17%	-4%	-6%	$55,986,000.00
RGL	Riversgold	0.049	-35%	2%	-6%	$29,715,196.89
ARN	Aldoro Resources	0.225	-20%	5%	-6%	$23,811,261.36
RMX	Red Mount Min Ltd	0.0075	-17%	-6%	-6%	$13,138,910.86
BYH	Bryah Resources Ltd	0.044	-21%	-10%	-6%	$10,631,737.23
ENT	Enterprise Metals	0.014	-36%	0%	-7%	$9,669,702.83
SYA	Sayona Mining Ltd	0.275	-19%	10%	-7%	$2,118,910,525.78
AAJ	Aruma Resources Ltd	0.08	-43%	1%	-7%	$13,498,689.26
JRL	Jindalee Resources	3.65	-23%	4%	-7%	$225,499,336.38
THR	Thor Mining PLC	0.013	-19%	-4%	-7%	$14,811,179.82
QXR	Qx Resources Limited	0.048	-38%	-11%	-8%	$44,686,840.69
G88	Golden Mile Res Ltd	0.05	-24%	0%	-11%	$11,409,026.38
PGD	Peregrine Gold	0.46	-4%	6%	-12%	$19,909,067.88
TSC	Twenty Seven Co. Ltd	0.0035	-13%	17%	-13%	$10,643,255.62

Only 18 stocks were in the green today, with 26 flatlining and a whopping 79 in the red.

Who’s got news out today?

DISCOVERY ALASKA (ASX:DAF)

A comprehensive data review has identified widespread lithium mineralisation within historical Coal Creek drill core in Alaska.

The company believes that lithium has never been assayed at the Coal Creek prospect, where multiple drill programs have been conducted over the past 40 years, and the majority of drill core from these campaigns – possibly over 5000m of core, is stored at the Alaska Geologic Materials Center warehouse, and available for the Company to utilise.

The core provides a high quality dataset at a fraction of the original exploration cost and time required to conduct such drilling.

Re-analysis work of drill core is currently in progress, with 12 drill-holes selected as initial priority for lithium assessment works.

GREEN TECHNOLOGY METALS (ASX:GT1)

The company has received assays for further seven holes from Phase 1 step-out diamond drilling of North Aubry deposit at the Seymour Lithium Project in Canada, with results including 10.5m at 1.77% Li2O from 123.2m (including 7m at 2.11% Li2O).

Plus, one hole intercepted 10.7m of pegmatite with significant visible spodumene (assays pending), extending the known North Aubry pegmatite a further 150m down-dip.

An updated mineral resource estimate for Seymour – currently 4.8 Mt at 1.25% Li2O1 – is on track for completion during Q2 CY2022.

LATIN RESOURCES (ASX:LRS)

The company has kicked off a 25,000m systematic resource definition diamond drilling program at the Colina prospect at its Bananal project in Brazil – where previous drilling has returned thick high-grade lithium with results up to 3.22% Li2O.

And the first hold has already intersected a 27.78m pegmatite with a central core of over 21m logged with significant >20% spodumene.

The company has also begun an initial three hole drill program at the Monte Alto Prospect.

DAF, GT1 and LRS share prices

GLOBAL LITHIUM RESOURCES (ASX:GL1)

GL1 is gearing up for its maiden 20,000m RC drilling campaign at the Manna project, with a contractor mobilised to site.

The project hosts a maiden inferred mineral resource of 9.9Mt at 1.14% Li2O, the company anticipates a mineral resource update will follow the drilling program along with additional metallurgical test work in Q4 2022.

FIRETAIL RESOURCES (ASX:FTL)

The freshly listed company has just completed a reconnaissance site trip to its Yalgoo project, with high priority target areas identified.

“On the back of the $8.25m capital raising, the Firetail team has hit the ground running and are well advanced in our preparations and site activities remain on track to commence in the coming weeks,” executive chairman Brett Grosvenor said.

Surface litho-structural mapping and auger geochemical sampling programs are set to commence early next month.

BRYAH RESOURCES (ASX:BYH)

Bryah is selling 51% of its non-core Lake Johnston lithium-nickel project to Mining Green Metals.

The company will retain exposure to any upside in the project through its remaining 49% interest in the endeavour, which consists of eight exploration licence applications covering 690km2 close to the Mount Holland lithium mine and the historical Maggie Hays/Emily Ann nickel deposits.

“The Lake Johnston tenements are prospective for battery metals lithium and nickel and the Bryah team has completed reconnaissance to follow-up on existing data and geological mapping,” chief executive officer Ashley Jones said.

“The Lake Johnston assets deserve a dedicated exploration effort and team, which will be able to be provided by inclusion in a company with the technical, human, and financial resources to advance these exciting assets.”