ONE OF A MINE
A lithium mine in Quebec will soon be the only Canadian site mining the material used in EV batteries, following regulatory approval from Canada’s Department of Fisheries and Oceans. The Australian-based Sayona Mining is set to open a pit mine near Val-d’Or in northwestern Quebec. Sayona says it received over 130 permits from federal and provincial regulators. The company first purchased the project in 2021, working with American Piedmont Lithium Inc. to form a joint venture, Sayona Quebec. An agreement between the companies will also see Piedmont purchase a minimum of 113,000 tonnes per year of spodumene concentrate, totalling 65 percent of its production, the American company’s CEO told Automotive News Canada. Sayona also said it is forming plans for the processing of lithium concentrate, destined for integration in EV batteries.
