SK On signs supply agreement with Australian resources developer
Battery maker SK On signed a long-term supply agreement for high-purity lithium with an Australian resources developer — the latest in a string of deals to reorient its supply chain of materials toward North America and its allies.
Under the agreement signed with Lake Resources on Tuesday, SK On will be provided with 230,000 tons of lithium, a key raw material used in electric vehicle (EV) batteries, for 10 years starting in the fourth quarter of 2024.
The amount is enough to produce some 4.9 million EVs.
SK On will also be acquiring a 10 percent stake in the miner via a rights offering, which will be finalized around the first half of next year.
For the first two years of the 10-year supply period, Lake Resources will provide SK On with 15,000 tons annually, with the amount to be increased to 25,000 tons a year for the next five years. An option for an additional five years will be applied.
The material will be processed in North America, the battery maker explained, to qualify for the subsidy guaranteed under the Inflation Reduction Act.
Established in 1997, Lake Resources owns and has been developing four lithium brine assets and one lithium mine in Argentina. SK On will be supplied with the mineral from the Kachi lithium brine project.
BY PARK EUN-JEE, YONHAP [park.eunjee@joongang.co.kr]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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