RE:Missed the boatIt costs money to pick up rock, and it often costs more money to put it back down. With hardrock at Frontier you pick up a ton of ore and lay down 3/4 of a ton of sand. With clays to get the same amount of lithium you need to pick up 20 tons of ore, add 30 or more tons of water (which Nevada does not have), and end up with 50 tons of clay sludge that will not dewater and that now need to be dealt with. You also need equipment in the process plant capable of handling 20x the ore capacity of a hardrock operation. There is a reason that lithium clays have been known about for a century and are still sitting there.
If Tesla really wanted to make a difference they would be investing in the technology to recycle their batteries. That would have a much bigger long term effect upon the lithium economy and a much greater social benefit than any attempts on their part to move into the lithium supply side.