Issue 52, March 01st – March 15th CONTENT Batteries Introduction and Vehicles General Motors’s Volt production stands by 1 During the past two weeks important announcements were made in the Coda Automotive at final stage of assembling its first electric car lithium world. One could say that the news with the greatest impact was Electrovaya launched a new line of lithium-ion batteries GM’s decision to suspend for a limited period the manufacture of the Volt Bosch, Daimler, BMW Group, Siemens and others formed Joint Venture for due to inventory accumulation. It is also important to comment that a electromobility couple of months ago the Company faced some problems with the battery 3M invests anode materials for Lithium- ion batteries pack (which is supplied by LG Chem.). Regarding lithium companies, it is A123 Systems announced new contracts/agreements important to highlight the opening of the Jiangsu lithium carbonate plant in China (Galaxy Resources), which is going to be the largest-capacity battery grade lithium carbonate plant in the Asia Pacific Region, with a design capacity of 17,000 tonnes per year. Lithium Industry Lithium One reports pumping test results at Sal de Vida Ultra Lithium signs Letter of Intent for strategic alliance POSCO introduced high-speed lithium extraction technology New World Resources extends period of exclusive negotiations with Li3 Energy SQM reports earnings for 2011 Orocobre reports the Maiden Resource for the Salinas Grandes project Galaxy Resources opened Jiangsu Lithium Carbonate Plant Mammoth Energy Group registered all current Chilean claims Li3 Energy signed MoU with strategic partner POSCO LITHIUM, BATTERIES AND VEHICLES Batteries and Vehicles2 BRIEF NEWS HIGHLIGHTS Ford introduced first all- electric vehicle Date: March 05th General Motors’s Volt production stands by Source: Ford Date: March 03rd Ford introduced at the 2012 Source: Reuters Geneva Motor Show its first all- General Motors (GM) announced it would temporality shut down electric passenger car, the Focus production of the Chevy Volt since it was building up inventories Electric. This vehicle is powered despite the raise in sales in February over January. The Company by a 23kWh lithium-ion battery reported that sales in 2011 reached 7,671 units and 1,626 units pack and has a target range of during the first two months of 2012. 100 miles which could be fully charged in about three to four hours. Coda Automotive at final stage of assembling its first Smith Electric Vehicles will electric car provide FedEx Express an all- Date: March 12th electric Step Van Source: Coda Automotive Date: March 06th Source: Smith Electric Coda Automotive announced that its first fully electric car is at the final stage of assembly. The car is powered by a 31 KWh lithium Smith Electric Vehicles launched iron phosphate battery pack that allows an autonomy up to 125 an all-electric vehicle that can miles. According to the Company, in California with the federal and reach a range of approximately individual state savings and credits the price should be below US$ 100 miles in a single charge. FedEx 27,250. Express is going to be the first Company to deploy this vehicle in the United States. LITHIUM, BATTERIES AND VEHICLES Tata Motors introduced a Electrovaya launched a new line of lithium-ion batteries new range extended electric Date: March 14th vehicle Source: Electrovaya Date: March 06th Electrovaya made its first product delivery of a 25kWh, 400V Lithium Source: Tata Motors Ion SuperPolymer® Battery Energy Storage System to a large Tata Motors introduced at the Japanese Utility through Nippon Kouatsu Electric Co. Ltd. The system Geneva Motor Show the Tata will provide energy storage for a program to investigate distributed Megapixel, a city-smart global Energy Storage for Solar Applications. range extended electric vehicle concept that combines a lithium- ion phosphate battery with an on-board petrol engine generator, Bosch, Daimler, BMW Group, Siemens and others which enables the car to reach a formed Joint Venture for electromobility range of up to 900 km. Date: March 15th Source Bosch Bosch along with Daimler, the BMW group, EnBW, RWE and Siemens The Boeing Company formed a Joint Venture named Hubject Gmbh in order to develop installed Coulomb’s and operate a data platform that would create an integrated charging infrastructure for mobility and vehicle providers. ChargePoint stations According to the information released, the number of electric Date: March 14th vehicles available in Germany is steadily increasing and this calls Source: Coulomb Tech for an easily accessible and integrated charging infrastructure. Coulomb Technologies announced that the Boeing Company installed Coulomb’s ChargePoint Stations for electric 3M invests anode materials for Lithium-ion batteries vehicles on four campuses. Date: March 15th According to the information, the Source: 3M charging stations were deployed 3M announced that is investing in research of silicon based anode as a pilot program sponsored materials. The investigation is financed by a grant of US$ 4.6 million by Boeing in order to respond from the US Department of Energy as part of efforts to build more to employee requests for EV energy-efficient vehicles. According to the Company, the research charging points at work would help to develop and integrate new cell materials that will make a transformative change in lithium- ion batteries’ energy density and cost used in electric vehicles. US Secretary of Energy announced National Clean Fleets Partnership Date: March 14th A123 Systems announced new contracts/agreements Source: US Department of Energy Date: March, Various The US Secretary of Energy Source: A123 Systems announced a partnership with A123 Systems announced that it would supply lithium-ion battery Best Buy, Johnson Controls, Pacific packs to Tata Motors for its hybrid electric systems for commercial Gas and Electric, and Veolia, in vehicle applications. The Company also announced the expansion order to assist the nation’s largest plan of its partnership with SAIC Motor where both companies fleet operators in reducing the are carrying out a feasibility study to define the business plan and amount of gasoline and diesel required investment for a jointly developed battery manufacturing they use nationwide. facility in China. Finally, the Company informed that its co-owned Joint Venture ATBS has been selected to develop battery packs for the new Geely’s plug-in hybrid electric sedan. LITHIUM, BATTERIES AND VEHICLES Lithium Industry3 BRIEF NEWS HIGHLIGHTS Rodinia Lithium received conditional approval at Lithium One reports pumping test results at Sal de Vida Clayton Valley Date: March 01st Source: Lithium One Inc. Date: March 01st Source: Rodinia Lithium Lithium One Inc. announced the completion of the short-term Rodinia Lithium announced pumping test program at the Sal de Vida lithium-potash brine that it has received conditional project in Argentina. Composite results (total of 37 samples) from 5 wells with the highest pumping rates indicated lithium content approval from the Bureau of ranging from 709 to 859 mg/l and averaging 776 mg/l. According Land Management permitting to the information, three regions within the basin have been the company’s subsidiary, identified as potential production well fields. Two of these areas Donnybrook Platinum Resources will be evaluated with long-term pumping test as part of the next to drill in Clayton Valley lithium- phase of development. brine project, Nevada. The Company plans to resume drilling once the Environmental Assessment and public comment Ultra Lithium signs Letter of Intent for strategic alliance period are complete. Date: March 02nd Source: Ultra Lithium Ultra lithium announced that it has entered into a non-binding letter of intent with Beijing Explo-Tech Engineering Co. Ltda. (BETEC) to form a strategic alliance for the exploration of Ultra’s prospective Serbian exploration licenses. According to the information, this CAD$4.25 million strategic alliance would allow the Company the rapid advancement of the exploration program with minimal dilution to the Company. LITHIUM, BATTERIES AND VEHICLES POSCO introduced high-speed lithium extraction BRIEF NEWS technology Date: March 05th Source: Posco RIST, under POSCO, had demonstrated the technology to directly Simbol Materials looks for extract lithium out of the salt water from the Great Lake of a new technique to extract Uyuni, Bolivia. This technology uses chemical reaction instead of lithium evaporation; the extraction period is shortened from 12 months to less than 1 month, and the recovery rate is bigger. Also the Date: March 01st Source: CNBC Company plans to construct lithium extraction plants in association with lithium producers which have salt water, based on the new According to the CNBC, Simbol lithium extraction technology. Materials is researching in a new technique to extract lithium out of the effluent water of geothermal power plants. Geothermal power New World Resources extends period of exclusive plants extract hot brine from negotiations with Li3 Energy underground to turn turbines and Date: March 05th generate power, a typical 50MW Source: New World Resources plant creates enough brine to produce 16,000 tones of lithium New World Resources announced that the Company and Li3 Energy, Inc. have agreed to extend the period of exclusive negotiations in carbonate. respect of the sales of the rights to New World’s lithium assets to Li3 Energy for a further 45-day period. All other terms of the letter of intent remain unchanged. SQM reports earnings for 2011 Date: March 06th Source: SQM SQM reported earnings for 2011 of US$545.8 million, an increase of 42.8% with respect to 2010. Gross margin reached US$854.8 million, increasing 36.5% from last year, and Revenues totaled US$2,145.3 million for 2011, representing an increase of 17.2% over the year 2010. According to SQM’s Chief Executive Officer, behind these big growth rates are the high volumes in specialty plant nutrition and record volumes in lithium and iodine business lines.