RE:GM letter to shareholdersWith other than GM NA EV OEM’s sourcing or planning to source their cathode active materials (CAM) from Asia at this time, it’ll be interesting to see how GM’s Ultium battery cell “NA focus supply chain” statement plays out. Posco Chemical will supply the Ultium’s CAM and currently is the only announced NA EV CAM manufacturing facility, requiring an assumed ROM of 5-6000 tpa battery grade cobalt sulphate.
Fortune Minerals plans to produce 1,800 tpa of sulphate from a NA refinery (Alberta) using NA mined (NWT) cobalt concentrate.
Jervois plans to produce 2,250 tpa of sulphate from a South American refinery (Brazil) using NA mined (Idaho) cobalt concentrate (1,900 tpa) and assumed concentrate from other sources. Jervois will also have access to 6,250 tpa of sulphate from the Kokkola, Finland refinery using assumed DRC mined cobalt concentrate.
Electra plans to produce 5,000 tpa of sulphate from a NA refinery (Ontario) using African mined (DRC) cobalt concentrate. This concentrate will be primarily sourced from the Kamoto mine and Tenke mine, of which Tenke is 80% Chinese owned.
If GM strictly adheres to their statement, you can only conclude that Fortune Minerals mined and refined cobalt would be their prefered cobalt.