The Global Lithium Podcast

Tu Le is the founder & Managing Director of Sino Auto Insights (@SinoAutoInsight on Twitter) and a Co-Host of the China EVs & More Podcast. Tu had significant experience with at Ford, GM and Apple before making his way to China and the EV world. Topics: China's current & future position in the global EV market Average battery sizes The return of EV incentives in China ? EV price cuts Tu Le: "BYD is what Tesla wants to be" Why is GM's CEO saying they can't build a profitable EV in the $30-40K price range in this decade China EV plans for North America The coming consolidation of EV producers in China Why legacy OEMs are on the decline in China E-Mobility "smartification" & ACES Why software leads the way in EV development North American & EU decoupling from China - easier said than done Changing the US driving mindset E- Mobility growth in India The critical metals angst of OEMs Sodium Ion battery impact on EVs ONE - Our Next Energy The top five global EV/Mobility companies in 2030 Rapid Fire

Ron Mitchell is the Managing Director of Global Lithium Resources (ASX GL1) and a veteran of the lithium industry with more than a decade of prior experience at Talison and Tianqi. Topics: Ron’s backstory Early days doing business in China Building relationships Negotiating in China How does the industry 10X supply? Ron’s spodumene price “crystal ball” Global Lithium Resources' two projects Building the team at GL1 Partners Offtake Going downstream? Doing mining differently Geopolitics A question for Ron from Tara Berrie Rapid fire from me as well as Alex Cheeseman Closing comments on China's "interesting" price narrative

John Worth is the CEO and MD of geo40 a technology company based in New Zealand engaged in low carbon recovery of minerals from geothermal fluids. They currently produce colloidal silica at commercial scale from geothermal streams in New Zealand and are leveraging that technology to provide direct lithium extraction (DLE) to a variety of asset types containing low levels of lithium (50 ppm & up). After successfully piloting DLE technology they now plan to move to the demo level with a target of commercialization in North America by 2025 and later in other jurisdictions. Topics: The need to add DLE to the lithium supply portfolio What makes a great DLE project Why it makes sense to pursue low ppm level lithium streams in North America Where DLE fits in on the cost curve Tailwinds from the "new normal" of lithium prices The need for multiple DLE players Why geo40 is leaving the Salton Sea to others My comments on what is happening in price

I speak with three podcast listeners who are also keen lithium investors - Nathan Wolyniec from Brisbane Australia; John McElroy, a Green Beret with more than 1,000 parachute jumps originally from Syracuse, NY and David Cebalo a retired investor from Indiana. We discuss what drew them to investing in lithium stocks, how they research companies and make decisions. I end the episode with some thoughts on the Livent - Allkem merger announced earlier this week.

There are two guests on this episode: Daniel Jimenez & David Guerrero. Both have been on the podcast multiple times. You will get perspective on Chile's new lithium strategy/policy from both sides of the Andes. We also discuss the lithium price and lithium development in Argentina. We probe the possibility of changes to Argentina's royalty structure and ponder Argentina's ultimate lithium production potential with and without DLE. We also briefly discuss lithium activity in Bolivia. If you want to hear more of my thoughts on the new policy in Chile, here is a link to an interview I did with a group in Chile is below: https://twitter.com/i/broadcasts/1eaKbrOoQDYKX

I presented "The Lithium Decade" in Singapore last week at the Future Facing Commodities conference. Select slides from the presentation will be available on the Global Lithium website.

Peter Hannah (@PHmetals on Twitter) is a senior manager at Fastmarkets. This is Peter's second appearance. His first appearance in June, 2022 was in the top ten of all episodes to date. We discuss the current pricing situation: the volatility in China with spot price dropping vs rising contract prices elsewhere, supply and demand, the future of lepidolite, the perceived threat of sodium ion batteries and much more.

Daniel Jimenez is the MD of iLi Markets and a director of Galan Lithium. He has deep experience in lithium after spending almost three decades at SQM before starting his own firm. This is Daniel's fourth appearance on the podcast. In this episode we have a detailed discussion on current and future supply by region in the face of unprecedented demand growth.  We discuss the currently volatile price situation in China, examine the reasons for it and try to put it in context with pricing in the markets outside of China. Daniel can be found on twitter at @D_Jimenez_Sch The iLi Markets website is ilimarkets.com

Jigar Shah (@JigarShahDC on Twitter) is the director of the Loan Programs Office at the Department of Energy. Mr. Shah was formerly the co-founder and President at Generate Capital, where he focused on helping entrepreneurs accelerate decarbonization solutions through the use of low-cost infrastructure-as-a service financing. Jigar also has the best laugh of any prior guest on the podcast and celebrated his two year anniversary at the DOE on March 3rd – the day we recorded. Topics: The mandate of the Loan Programs Office The calculus of leaving the private sector for the DOE The “alphabet soup” of government programs focused on the Energy Transition The laziness of big companies LPO loans – by invitation only Inspiring action where action wouldn’t otherwise happen Why Jigar can’t comment on a loan application to LAC for Thacker Pass Downstream battery investment vs upstream The contribution of recyclers Jigar Shah – the “long term lithium bull” “Friend-shoring” challenges Tesla What defines a “friend” of the US Supply chain risk management Rapid fire Closing comments on the BMO conference and lithium price

Emilie Bodoin is the CEO of Pure Lithium.  Pure Lithium is on a mission to change the way batteries are made. Topics: The current state of lithium metal technology Brine direct to lithium metal - the ultimate DLE? Lithium ion batteries: a successful compromise Making lithium metal batteries a reality Mentors: Dr Donald Sadoway & Robert Friedland The first big win Building a team Learning from mistakes Scale and cost Reality check A "not so loaded' question The DOE "disconnect" Lithium Metal Iron Phosphate Rapid Fire My thoughts on recent happenings in the industry