A Material Change: Bringing Lithium Production Back to America
July 5, 2012 Between 1980 and 2009, the global demand for
lithium has tripled. This metal is a key material in a number of
growing industries, including advanced vehicle batteries and
consumer electronics. But more specifically, lithium-ion
batteries are a vital component in electric vehicles and other
rechargeable batteries for consumer electronics and are used to
produce the plug-in electric vehicles on the market today. These
batteries also have a major impact on energy storage
infrastructure and are helping integrate renewable energy
sources into the electricity grid. After leading the world in
lithium production in the early 1990s, America now imports the
majority of its lithium materials and compounds from South
America. The Energy Department is hoping to bring lithium
production leadership back to the United States with a $28.4
million federal investment in the communities of Silver Peak,
Nevada, and Kings Mountain, North Carolina. Read the