good car modification

With all our recent Lithium Drive into Electric space we should not forget about core values and how we are going to charge our High Voltage babies - Next Industrial Revolution means a lot of Copper from electric motors to smart power grids.


































Webcast Minera Andes Denver Gold Forum 2009





$5,000/oz gold? Rob McEwen says it's coming in 2014 or 2015



Über gold promoter Rob McEwen has also developed a taste for silver mining. Author: Dorothy KosichPosted: Tuesday , 15 Sep 2009

RENO, NV -
When über mining investor Rob McEwen makes predictions on gold prices or appears to have developed an interest in silver mines, retail investors heed his clarion call and place their bets that the gold price is about to soar.
In a presentation to the Denver Gold Group on U.S. Gold Monday, McEwen was somewhat subdued as he only briefly mentioned he thought gold could hit $5,000 an ounce before the end of the gold cycle As this reporter scrambled for a clarification of his remarks in a brief interview, McEwen stuck by his prognostication, forecasting the end of the gold cycle would occur either in 2014 or 2015.
McEwen is so dedicated to the power of gold, he told his audience of fund managers, analysts, investment bankers and miners that he personally owns 21% of U.S. Gold. In comparison most major mining CEOs own a mere pittance.
He is steadfast in his belief that the Cortez Trend-which hosts Barrick's massive Cortez Hills gold project-will yield millions of gold ounces for his U.S. Gold company.
But, McEwen also has developed a fondness for silver, albeit he lacks the same passion for the precious metal as he feels for gold.
He declared to his audience Monday that "El Gallo, Mexico is becoming one of the world's great silver discoveries. " With a 540,000-acre position in what he called "highly mineralized lands," McEwen's U.S. Gold is spending $10 million in exploration over 12 months. He anticipates an initial resource and heap leach test during the first quarter of 2010.
Though he told Mineweb his interest in silver has been stimulated more by individual mining properties rather than a newfound passion for silver, McEwen has also become active in Minera Andes, which he says owns 49% of the world's ninth largest silver mine, San Jose in Argentina. By 2010, McEwen forecasts that San Jose will have 7.5 million ounces of silver and 95,000 ounces of gold. He also predicts the operating cash costs will go lower than the 29% drop to $4.99/oz achieved in the first quarter of this year,
He also believes that Minera Andes' Los Azules project is "one of the largest undeveloped copper discoveries in the world. And in keeping with his philosophy as Minera's Chairman and CEO, McEwen owns 33% of the company's shares.
As the years roll by, McEwen's legendary penchant for marketing to the max remains intact as he offered audience members trillion dollar notes as an impromptu raffle prize at the conclusion of his talk."

"Electric Mobility Revolution is happening, it is Lithium, it is safe and it is coming fast. We have met with designers and engineers, we have grilled Lithium batteries' developers and driven Tesla - Energy and Drive are Electric and Eco is the main theme at Frankfurt Motor Show this year."


"World's 3rd Largest Battery Maker to Boost Lithium-Ion Battery Sales 30 Fold By 2016

GS Yuasa President Makota Yoda said they plan to boost annual lithium-ion battery production more than 30 fold by 2016. Targeting a sales total of $1.1 billion by 2016, the Japanese company is talking with additional overseas EV makers to line up more sales.
The report coming from Reuters also suggests that the GS Yuasa joint venture with Mitsubishi Motors may result in additional sales for the company as early as next year.
GS Yuasa is currently the world's third largest lithium-ion battery producer and hopes to increase sales by counting on strong growth in the hybrid and full electric vehicle segments. They believe that government subsidies and a growing concern for the environment will lead additional automakers to produce EVs and hybrids in need of lithium-ion batteries.
The Japanese based company is in talks with undisclosed automakers from the United States, Europe, and additional local automakers in Japan.
The company has already lined up Mitsubishi and Honda for battery sales. The venture with Mitsubishi, called Lithium Energy Japan, is partially owned by GS Yuasa, Mitsubishi Corp, and Mitsubishi Motors. The joint venture with Honda will result in GS Yuasa making li-ion batteries for Honda hybrids starting next year.
By 2012, GS Yuasa hopes to begin selling batteries to additional automakers. In anticipation of growth, the company is building an additional manufacturing facility with the capability of producing 15,000 units per year.
With a growing market for lithium-ion batteries, one begins to wonder if there is enough supply. For information about lithium reserves and the possibility of a shortfall in lithium, please read our article titled "No Looming Lithium Shortage For EVs."
Source: Edmunds.com"

This is Commercial Fleet EV solution. 2011 production target. 24 kWh Lithium ion battery. Standard Charge and Quick Charge.

Kangoo Z.E. Concept is powered by a 70kW electric motor which delivers 226Nm of torque, in conjunction with a lithium-ion battery. Energy consumption is minimized thanks not only to the careful attention that has been paid to its overall design, but also to the energy optimization solutions it features, without the necessary high standard of comfort suffering in any way.
An urban and suburban calling
Kangoo Z.E. Concept's dimensions (length 3.95m, height: 1.85m) ensure that it is perfectly nimble and manoeuvrable in and about town. Its high torque (226Nm) is instantly available to ensure responsive acceleration performance in built-up areas.
Zero-emission mobility, too, for the professional road-user
The Kangoo Z.E. Concept provides a foretaste of what mobility promises to resemble in the future for urban-based transporter and delivery companies, while at the same time carrying over the same acclaimed strengths as Kangoo when it comes to travelling comfort, space and safety performance. To facilitate loading, the hatch-type rear door and wide, folding sill ensures that parcels and other types of loads are easy to slide into the boot.
Interactive and user-friendly

"Kangoo Z.E. Concept combines zero-emission technology with Kangoo’s acclaimed strengths of comfort, space, safety and performance." Carlos Ghosn

The Kangoo Z.E. Concept enables the driver to communicate with the vehicle with a view to profiting fully from its technology. For example, logos light up to signal that the vehicle recognizes occupants as they approach.As a socially responsible car, it is also equipped with polyurethane gel bumpers which deform easily to soak up minor knocks, while customers and pedestrians are reassured by their absorbent aspect.
A linear display on the outside of the door provides an indication of how much range remains even before the driver gets inside the vehicle. This lit display can be likened to the charge indicator of a cell phone.

"The outlook for lithium demand is robust in both the short and long term," says Jon Hykawy, lithium analyst with Byron Capital Markets.

WHO'S OUT THERE?
The list of companies exploring for lithium has been growing daily of late. Here are a few of the more active members of that list.
TNR Gold (TNR-V) is exploring a handful of lithium projects. At the Mariana project in Salta province, Argentina, TNR recently contracted advisors to help guide an exploration program. Mariana is a road-accessible lithium-boron salar, or salt lake; salars host some of the world's largest known lithium and boron resources. The advisors' work will inform a National Instrument 43-101-compliant report on the project; once TNR has a project report it can complete its previously-announced spin-off of International Lithium.TNR also owns eight exploration licenses in Ireland's Leinster pegmatite belt, which it says are prospective for lithium, tantalum, and other rare earth elements. The company recently acquired the Maximoose lithium property in the Northwest Territories from a private owner and is exploring two lithium projects in Nevada as well as three lithium properties in Ontario.TNR's share price hit a low of 2¢ in December but by mid-August rallied to a high of 35¢ and currently sits near 27¢. The company has 85 million shares outstanding."

The art of selling: Byron securities is financing TNR Gold TNR.v second time within one month and it looks like they can not get enough. Jon Hykawy did not mention TNR Gold in his last piece on Lithium plays below, but we guess it is just because there is no need to push this one now and financing is sold already. We will monitor the closing and our Global Lithium and REE play graduating to the new level. Financing is above the recent market price and shows management confidence in company's value proposition. Some results from exploration programmes must be due early next month and Xstrata decision on Los Azules will bring more excitement to the market place. Industry insiders are taking their stakes in the promising sector.

"September 22, 2009

TNR Gold / International Lithium Announces $3,000,000 Private Placement

Vancouver B.C.: TNR Gold Corp. ("TNR" or the "Company") is pleased to announce a brokered private placement led by Byron Securities Ltd. (the "Agent") for up to 10,000,000 units (each "Unit"), priced at $0.30 per Unit which will result in gross proceeds to the Company of up to $3,000,000 (the "Offering"). Each Unit is comprised of one common share and one half of one share purchase warrant (each whole warrant, a "Warrant"). Each whole Warrant is exercisable at a price of $0.50 per share for a period of 12 months following closing.

As consideration for acting as agent, the Agent will receive a commission of 5% of the gross proceeds raised, payable in cash. In addition, the Agent will be issued agent's warrants ("Agent's Warrants") equal in number to 5% of the number of Units placed in the Offering, each such Agent's Warrant entitling the Agent to acquire one common share of the Company at an exercise price of $0.30 per common share for 12 months from closing. The offering is subject to TSX Venture Exchange approval and any regulatory approvals.

Proceeds of the private placement will be used to fund the evaluation of TNR's Lithium and Rare Metal properties, implement the proposed spin-off of International Lithium Corp. and for general corporate purposes

ABOUT TNR GOLD CORP. / INTERNATIONAL LITHIUM CORP.

TNR is a diversified metals exploration company focused on identifying and exploring existing properties in and new prospective projects globally. TNR has a total portfolio of 32 properties, of which 16 will be included in the proposed spin-off of International Lithium Corp. It is anticipated that TNR shareholders of record will receive one share and one full tradable warrant of International Lithium Corp. for every 4 shares of TNR held as of the yet determined record date. This will result in TNR shareholders owning shares in both TNR and International Lithium. For further details of the spin-off please refer to TNR's April 27, 2009 news release or visit

The recent acquisition of lithium projects in Argentina, Canada, USA and Ireland confirms the company's commitment to project generation, market diversity, and building shareholder value.

Byron Capital Markets (Division of Byron Securities Ltd) contact: Robert Orviss CFA 647.426.1668.Gary SchellenbergPresident"

Sep 25, 2009 - 04:51 PM
By: The_Gold_Report

One of these days, pent-up demand for new cars and growing concern about the carbon footprint associated with driving vehicles powered by traditional internal combustion engines will fuel tremendous demand for lithium, a development sure to spark greater investor interest, as well. A staple in batteries for hybrids and all-electric vehicles on the road and on the drawing boards, lithium is becoming a darling among hot commodities. As one of the few of his ilk on the planet, Jon Hykawy is also in considerable demand these days. The Gold Report caught up with Jon in Buenos Aires, where he—as Byron Capital Markets' recently appointed lithium analyst—is checking out facilities in Argentina, the world's second-largest (behind Chile) lithium-producing country, to talk about his favorite subject.

The Gold Report: You've indicated strong demand ahead for lithium ion batteries, anticipating a 40% increase by 2014 and suggesting good return-on-investment opportunities in lithium companies. To what extent does the demand for batteries that underlies those expectations rely on an economic recovery?
Jon Hykawy: Due to the downturn's global hits on demand for all metals, no question; and that forecast depends on some sort of economic recovery. But the recovery we've built into our model is actually fairly—and perhaps somewhat surprisingly—slow. We don't see the economy getting back to historic levels of growth in consumer electronics or in battery demand, for that matter, for at least two years, probably not until about 2012. Yet lithium demand and lithium battery growth will increase in much the same way as they have since 1999 or 2000. Part of that demand is predicated on continued growth in sectors where the lithium battery has almost fully penetrated, such as cell phones and laptops. Part of it is continuing cost reductions that are driving lithium batteries into new areas.
TGR: What are some of those areas?
JH: Demand for nickel-metal hydride (NiMH) batteries for items such as power tools will disappear as lithium battery prices continue to fall and start to rival prices for smaller NiMH battery packs. Very few analysts have built that into their lithium demand models to date. It's going to be interesting to see the growth curve over the next two, three to five years.
TGR: Do you see any potential breakthroughs in battery technology that could affect the demand for lithium the same way lithium is affecting NiMH batteries?
JH: Certainly chemistries are under development that could be positive for lithium. Various groups are investigating the use of lithium vanadium phosphate batteries or lithium vanadium fluorophosphate batteries. Their advantages over current chemistries are greater safety and much longer operating lives, which might be very, very interesting for automotive batteries. But these are out a number of years.
On the flip side, things that could damage lithium demand—we know of a couple of companies that are doing a fair bit of research into NiMH batteries, specifically into the powders used in those batteries. They could certainly take a significant chunk out of demand for conventional NiMH powders in NiMH batteries because their chemistries are cheaper to produce and actually slightly more efficient in terms of the battery that they can create. But the companies themselves would by no means claim that they can beat lithium ion at its own game, so lithium ion demand shouldn’t be impacted.
The only other thing I've seen that's credible for automotive use, for instance—certainly not for handhelds—are some of the molten salt batteries or sodium-sulfur type chemistries, or some other similar things that have been proposed. They have a very long operating life, long enough to have the game won over lithium in that regard. Although not nearly as good as lithium, they also have reasonably good energy density and power density. The problem is that they have to run at several hundred degrees, creating both infrastructure and safety issues.
I know people are working on lightweight lead-acid versions and various other chemistries. I wish them all the luck in the world, but I don't think they'll be able to do anything to blunt the scale or the pace of lithium battery development. So, no, I don't see anything in the immediate future with the potential to really push lithium ion out of the game.
TGR: So the battle for batteries in the current marketplace is between lithium ion and nickel-metal hydride?
JH: Yes, and the decision has kind of come out in lithium ion's favor simply because it can put out so much more energy. Basically you get operating lifetime per charge out of the battery, and now it can also put out the power. The one area in which nicad (nickel-cadmium) or NiMH was once better was an abundance of power; so, in the past, the ability to turn a screw into hardwood with a power drill or accelerate an electric vehicle favored NiMH. But that's no longer true. Lithium's development has been so rapid that its specific power—the amount of power that you can draw out of the battery of a given size and weight—has now overtaken NiMH.
TGR: What about the electronics space?
JH: Portable game-playing devices would be a good example. Circa 2000, Nintendo would have shipped the Game Boy Advance without batteries. It would have come with slots where you plugged in either your own rechargeable AA batteries or regular alkaline batteries. The new Nintendo DSi comes with a rechargeable lithium ion battery. Until recently, it would have been too expensive to include it with the device, but it's dropped to a feasible price point now. And frankly, NiMH was never there in terms of its performance. It simply couldn't deliver an experience that would make Nintendo happy.
TGR: Is the electronics arena where you see future growth coming from as well?
JH: Since 2000, though we've seen about 30,000 or 40,000 tons a year of additional demand arise for lithium, most of it coming out of nowhere in terms of these consumer batteries. And that demand continues to grow, so lithium is in substantial demand. The price has gone up as a result, and we continue to see that kind of growth.
Lithium is also used in glass production, basically to drive down the melting point of glass and keep energy costs low.
We believe future growth will continue to come from a combination of theft of market share from some of the other rechargeable chemistries and encroachment into new areas where the lithium ion battery hasn't been before. It's entirely possible that we'll see lithium ion batteries become the batteries of choice for starting and lighting in the automotive industry, for instance, but price points have to drop considerably before that happens.
TGR: Will lithium-oriented batteries play a role in alternative energy technologies?
JH: Not a huge role. We don't factor that into our model for lithium growth at all. I am a big believer in the space generally, but existing small-cell battery technologies such as lead-acid have been disproven already and actually have come to be hated in the alternative energy industry. A number of large-scale lead-acid power-storage experiments were economic disasters for the companies that tried them. Lithium is likely to fall in the same camp.
TGR: What's the problem in those situations?
JH: When you move up to the scale required of large alternative energy projects such as wind farms, when you pile that many of them together, even lithium ion batteries have an unacceptable failure rate on an individual cell basis. After a period of time, you end up with a stream of technicians running in and out of the storage facility just carrying batteries. It's not a pretty picture.
TGR: And there is a global abundance of lithium on the supply side to meet the demand you foresee?
JH: There absolutely is a huge abundance of lithium. It is about as common in the earth's crust as nickel or lead. But on a global basis, the question is never whether there is a ready supply or an abundance; it's whether the supply is economically viable. There are huge quantities of lithium available in the ocean too, but it's extremely dilute and its chemical similarity to the huge quantity of magnesium that's also in the water is another issue. Getting to the lithium supply economically at a price point similar to today's is even trickier. So while lithium may be plentiful, there is not a huge abundance of places on earth where you can get inexpensive lithium. That's really the question to concentrate on.
TGR: Where would an investor track the price of lithium?
JH: That is a tough one. The market really is dominated today by four very large chemical company players, to which lithium is somewhat an afterthought. They tend to sell to only a few buyers who basically phone them and set up contracts. We track the price of lithium either by calling these companies ourselves and asking about the short-term delivery cost for a ton of lithium carbonate or relying on Industrial Minerals magazine. It has fairly good coverage of the lithium space and puts out reasonable numbers gleaned from those buyers on longer-term contracts.
TGR: So, it's similar to uranium before uranium started trading on the futures exchange.
JH: It really is. It's a relatively small market controlled by very few players. You certainly can't trade contracts or anything like that in lithium, so it's tougher to watch. Since SQM (NYSE:SQM) drove a lot of the hard rock players out of the market in the 2001–2002 timeframe, the price has marched up steadily. We have seen prices go to the range of $6,500–$6,600 per metric ton of lithium carbonate equivalent. It has plateaued a bit through this downturn, but I fully expect the price to climb again.
TGR: Where can an investor look at the price trends?
JH: The U.S. Geological Survey is actually the easiest place to check. I believe the price was about $3,500 per ton in the late '90s. When it hit about $4,000, spodumene producers started to make inroads into the market because that price made them economically viable. SQM flooded the market with lithium and drove the price down to about $1,400, taking a lot of the spodumene players out of the game. The only one left standing at the end of the day was Talison Minerals Pty Ltd. in Australia because they had tantalum to tide them over. The price climbed from the 2000–2001 low point at that time to as high as $7,000, and then leveled off to about $6,500 through this downturn. It remains near historical high levels.
TGR: What's driving the price of lithium up if there's enough production to match demand?
JH: Good point. The lithium is out there and available. The problem is the big producers today are not producing it as their sole product. For instance, lithium probably drives only 7% or 8% of SQM's revenues. Their primary product is potash. Secondly, the largest producers in the world—SQM (NYSE:SQM), FMC Lithium, which is part of FMC Lithium Corporation (NYSE:FMC) and Chemetall Lithium, which is part of Rockwood Holdings Inc (NYSE:ROC) —by and large draw from aquifers, from brines, to produce the lithium. If you pull too much water out of the aquifer too fast, you run the risk of depleting it completely or diluting it substantially and damaging not only lithium production, but also potash.
TGR: What's the investor opportunity in lithium if the majors treat it as an afterthought?
JH: We believe the best way to play the market is to buy a good basket of juniors that are exploring for lithium. It's traditionally the juniors that go out and find it and either become major players themselves or get acquired by players already in the market.
TGR: Brine extraction is today's low-cost production technology for lithium, but aren't these juniors looking at a different type of extraction?
JH: Yes and no. Brine certainly is, by and large, the lowest-cost way to go, though investors have to watch out for some things. The first cut for wheat from chaff is the magnesium-to-lithium ratios in brines. For every integer point increase in that ratio, add $180 to $200 of cost per ton. That puts the economically viable point for brine these days at a ratio of about 11:1 or 12:1. If you see anything much higher than that, run; there's no point in looking at it. Anything close to that actually gets to be economically scary because certainly we could have downturns in pricing.
A lot of the juniors are looking in places with good magnesium-to-lithium ratios, good concentrations of lithium in the brine, good evaporation rates so that production is relatively quick and good hydrogeology so they can actually pump enough water out of the ground to reach reasonable annual production levels.
TGR: Are there any particular juniors you're watching in that space?
JH: We've generally been counseling investors to look at primarily two things first. We believe the big drivers in this market are going to be cost and time to market. You keep the cost as low as possible because that gives you the best opportunity in any market. The companies that can get into production and be in the marketplace quickly are likely the ones to benefit the most in the lithium space. That tends to point to good companies that are exploring and looking at brines.
There are several good examples of companies doing what I described. You've probably seen stories recently about Lithium One Inc. (TSX.V:LI) acquiring good properties on Salar de Hombre Muerto in Argentina. The area has historically good chemistries in terms of that magnesium-lithium ratio. Grab sampling on these sites indicates good lithium concentrations. That's the kind of property that is available if you look for it.
Amerpro Resources Inc. (TSX.V:AMP.A) and Rodinia Minerals Ltd. (TSX.V:RM) would be two other examples. They're looking in Nevada near the old Foote Minerals operation, which Chemetall now owns and has been operating for a number of years. Those brines have historically had extremely good chemistries; they've produced in the range of 5,000–10,000 tons per year for decades. Interestingly, the brines in Nevada are more suited to producing lithium and not really economically viable potash.
You obviously never know until you drill, but you'd expect them to be of similar quality for lithium for Amerpro and Rodinia. And of course Nevada is politically stable; it's a good part of the world with a good record with mining and no land claim issues outstanding. You know what you're getting into.
Similarly, we like stories such as Orocobre Limited (ASX:ORE) and Lithium Americas Corp. that operate in Argentina. Lithium One's new property on Salar de Hombre Muerto, just down the road from FMC's great lithium-producing area, isn't the size of some of the others that are in the media more extensively (such as Salar de Uyun in Bolivia or Salar de Atacama in Chile), but it is regarded as one of the prime properties on earth because of its chemistry, its history and its hydrogeology.
TGR: And Orocobre?
JH: Orocobre has properties on the Salar de Cauchari and Salar de Olaroz in Argentina, and politically Argentina's stands head and shoulders above some other jurisdictions Again, a good project, a very good area, very accessible. And from what I've seen, hands down, Orocobre may have the most knowledgeable management team I've run across.
Of the juniors in Argentina that are at the exploration stage, they're ahead of everyone else. They are test-pulling brine out of their deposit and have evaporation ponds up and running. I've seen them in action. They aren't full-scale yet, but everyone else is just starting to do their drills and their characterization if they're lucky. Orocobre has done all of that. If everything works out in terms of the chemistry, they could be one of the early players into production.
It's relatively north of some of the other salars. Good access, probably only an hour or so from major highways, so transport issues are relatively minimal. That's a huge benefit, because some of the other salars are very remote.
Lithium Americas also is on Cauchari, Olaroz and several other salars. Again, a very good group. All of these companies seem to have very tight, very good management teams, which is also critical because you want to get these projects into production.
TGR: Any others?
JH: A couple of other names I should highlight are New World Resources (TSX.V:NW) and Western Lithium Corp. (TSX.V:WLC). New World has properties in Bolivia. Everybody is excited about Bolivia because it is the Saudi Arabia of lithium with Salar de Uyun. There are issues with de Uyun, chemical as well as political. It has very high levels of magnesium. As I explained, if the magnesium-lithium ratio is sort of 10:1 or better, you still might have something that's economic—but barely. In large portions of de Uyun, the ratio is 30:1—very difficult to be economical. New World also has property that I believe is south of de Uyun, on Salar de Pastos Grandes. The area they're in has extremely good magnesium-to-lithium ratios. Again, others have explored the area; the hydrogeology looks right. We won't know until drill holes and wells are in, but things look good, and the land claim they're on is private. The government has never stepped on private land claims in Bolivia. The management team there already has a good relationship with COMIBOL, the state-owned mining authority. John Lando, New World's president, and Joan McCorquodale, its Exploration VP, have worked in Bolivia for extended periods. They know the land, the people and what they need to do to get into production. So that's another story we like.
TGR: How about Western Lithium?
JH: For scale and political stability, we like the clays and we like Western Lithium. If their process proves out, they should be able to produce a fair amount of potash along with the lithium, which will keep their relative costs down. If they're lucky and hit an absolute home run, they may even be able to produce hydrofluoric acid, which would be a cash cow for them. That's a bit "iffier" but they have a huge resource. They can scale up without damaging that reserve because it's basically open-pit mining. And they're in the United States (Kings Valley in northern Nevada). Everybody recognizes the value in producing in a politically stable jurisdiction, even if it does cost a little bit more. So, we like WLC; it's a good story.
TGR: Any other suggestions?
JH: In general, you need to look at the viability of the project, the viability of the management team and diversification. Don't put all your eggs in one basket, because there's always a chance that even if it's on a great property in an area that's historically been wonderful, a company could be an unlucky one that finds itself drilling into an isolated aquifer with bad chemistry, or that hits a rotten area that isn't as porous as everywhere else and they can pull only 1,000 tons a year production out of a site. You just don't know until the holes are in the ground and production begins.
The economics favor even a small company that can produce 10,000 tons of lithium carbonate equivalent a year, because you're looking at $65 million in revenue. The cash-flow margin for a company with good brine in place is probably at least $4,000 a ton—probably more like $5,000 on a variable cost basis. You're looking at a complete payback in a year and a half or two years.
TGR: And minimal capex.
JH: The entire operation—to set up the facility, dig and line the ponds, do all the processing, everything—you might be talking about $60 million or $80 million. So for brine, very definitely; for hard rock, not necessarily. A few companies have found pegmatite (the spodumene-type deposits that are near surface) and maybe can establish a shovel-and-blast type operation from surface, but by and large, they have all the costs of setting up a hard rock mine.
When you're doing this with brine, on the other hand, you dig a few pits; line them with polyethylene; basically start pumping water, and then sit back to let nature do its thing. You're really moving a fairly concentrated material out with no additional processing required, other than the wind and sun. This is neither the mining nor the capex that most people know.
TGR: Is clay an attractive alternative to brine?
JH: The advantage with the clays, such as the hectorite deposits in Nevada, is a substantially higher lithium concentration than in most of the brines you'll ever find. They're open-pit operations and the deposits are close to the surface, so their cost is relatively low. They've been proven out to some extent in terms of cost and the flow processes to get the lithium out. Engineering work completed by Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX), and later by the U.S. Bureau of Mines in the 1980s, is now being advanced by Western Lithium, the only company I know that's really actively working in this area today. They have a process that is likely to be more expensive in producing lithium than a good brine deposit, but it also may be substantially cleaner as an end product. With fewer contaminants than you'd derive from a brine, this would potentially mean much lower cost to a manufacturer who would be able to avoid all the secondary refining needed to produce battery-grade lithium extracted from brine. Bulk-grade lithium carbonate equivalent sells for about $6,500 per ton, but battery-grade lithium carbonate equivalent sells for about $45,000–$50,000 a ton. It's simply more valuable and it has undergone a number of other processes to basically create something that can be used in batteries.
TGR: But won't prices like that drive the price point up high enough to hamper the growth in lithium demand we've been talking about?
JH: Not really. Raw lithium accounts for only about 1% of final battery cost, so even refined lithium doesn't add a substantial amount to cost. So I stand by what I said. Lithium demand will continue to grow.
DISCLOSURE: Jon HykawyI personally and/or my family own the following companies mentioned in this interview: noneI personally and/or my family am paid by the following companies mentioned in this interview: none
Toronto-based Jon Hykawy, who earned his PhD in physics (University of Manitoba, 1991) and an MBA (Queen's University, 1997), spent four years in capital markets as a clean technologies/alternative energy analyst before being named lithium analyst at Byron Capital Markets in August. Jon began his career in the investment industry in 2000, originally working as a technology analyst concentrating on the lithium space. Jon has become a valuable resource on everything about the light, silver-white metal—from supply and demand to exploration and production. He has extensive experience in the solar, wind and battery industries, conducting significant research in the areas of rechargeable batteries, from alkalines to lithium-ion to flow batteries."

We spent some time travelling and will share our travel notes later, for today we can say that Electric Mobility Revolution is happening, it is Lithium, it is safe and it is coming fast. We have met with designers and engineers, we have grilled Lithium batteries' developers and driven Tesla - Energy and Drive are Electric and Eco is the main theme at Frankfurt Motor Show this year.

Renault is the Electric Big Bang of the show with four full electric models and their prediction: " In ten years time 15-20% of cars sold in Europe will be electric". Everybody else is on the rush to be up to speed of development in Green Mobility Race with Mercedes, BMW and Audi shows built around centerpiece: Full Electric models and Hybrid cars.

We have put it before as "Investing in Lithium and REE: Hype, Dreams and Economics" - now we can add that Hype for Electric is at its very beginning, Dreams are at the show and the most important left is economics: regarding cars - you can drive 100km for 2 euro in Germany and even less in Austria; and Renault is claiming the price for the car in normal range with battery leased to the customer; regarding Lithium and REE plays - time is to see who has the goods, strong management and access to the capital. Question whether Electric cars will be on the road with Lithium ion batteries and whether they will have utility and safety matching "normal car" is not there for us any more.

"Electricity is the most convenient form of energy available to us, now we have means to store it.

"Applications of this simple statement could transform our way of life dramatically. Once it was estimated that there will be need in maximum six computers in the world. When have you bought CD last time and paid for your mobile phone? Magnitude of this change in energy space will be even more dramatic socially and economically."

"A COMPREHENSIVE REPORT by international consultancy Deloitte predicts that the future automotive landscape will feature more streamlined production, more rapid adoption of new technologies, and a shift to electric vehicles.
Manufacturing operations will also become concentrated in lower production-cost countries such as China, India and Eastern Europe.
Development costs, environmental concerns and corporate restructuring will be the main issues for the world’s automakers, while consumers will see more platform-sharing in new car line-ups.
Global platforms and cars will be adopted more widely by large automakers such as Toyota, General Motors and Ford, replacing myriad region-specific models and different chassis architectures.
Vehicles like the Holden Cruze represent the first wave of this new trend. Globally-developed and distributed vehicles will be able to recoup development costs quicker due to higher overall sales volumes.
The bulk of car manufacturing is also anticipated to move away from countries with high labour costs such as the USA, Japan and Germany, and migrate to emerging economies in China and India.
The report said that increased investment in production line technology will keep quality levels high, no matter the country of manufacture, and parts suppliers are expected to move overseas too.
According to Deloitte, new markets in developing countries will increase demand for new cars, with China and India to account for most of this new uptake.

The emergence in both countries of a significant middle class should drive sales of private vehicles, and luxury vehicle sales in these markets are also expected to rise.
The report said that car buyers around the world - not just those in developed countries - will become more safety-conscious, and will also demand new high-tech devices in their cars.
Electric vehicles are expected to become prevalent over the next decade, however the high cost of EV battery packs and the continued availability of oil means uptake will be slow to start with.
According to the report, hybrids will be more popular than EVs, but beyond 2020 all-electric vehicles are predicted to be the urban commuter’s conveyance of choice.
Alternative fuels like natural gas and ethanol will likely continue to be flirted with, the report said, but EVs are expected to become more mainstream than hydrocarbon fuels in the long term."

"We are closely watching developments with Tata Motors in Electric Car space. Tata is producing the world cheapest car, if they will be able to move into electric cars' market and produce reliable cheap electric cars they will make our Next Big Thing really big. The same reason for our attention applies to BYD - both companies are lacking public recognition as a reliable car brands, but in our mass market they can become the driving force. China has overtaken recently USA as the biggest auto market in the world and both China and India can not grow their mobility to the western standard penetration rate without risk of suffocating their own population."

Very impressive claims on recharging time and range of this nice looking Electric car. Pricing range and idea of Electric Mobility: pay as you go for the battery will bring electric cars to the reach of mass market consumers.

FRANKFURT: Reva Electric Car Company announced the launch of its model Reva NXR while unveiling another variant Reva NXG, at the Frankfurt International Motor Show. Reva NXR, a lithium-ion battery powered car is scheduled to go for production early next year and Reva NXG's manufacturing is scheduled for 2011, a company statement said. Reva NXR is a four-seater hatchback model and can attain top speed of 104 kmph and cover a distance of up to 160 kilometres in a single charge, it added. The car is loaded with several other features such as keyless operation, dual charge port, digital display and SMS alerts. It can travel up to 320 km per day using 90 minutes fast charges and a fast charge of 15 minutes will provide a 40 km range, the company said. The company has priced Reva NXR at 14,995 euros and Reva NXG at 23,000 euros excluding the cost of battery in European market. However, prices of both models in Indian would be announced the next year. "NXR is a stylish car packed full of user-friendly technology. You can order one from today and production will start early next year.." Reva Chief Technology Officer Chetan Mani said.

"The world cannot afford conventional cars anymore." A surge in global oil prices last year had helped raise people's consciousness, he added. "Five years ago I don't think people were thinking about electric cars," said Maini, Reva's deputy chairman and chief technical officer. When consumers mull a purchase now however, "they would at least consider an electric car," the Indian entrepreneur added. Reva will launch its Bangalore output with capacity of 300,000 vehicles per year. "We believe it may take us two to three years to get to full capacity but we think the market potential is very high, and that's why we are setting up that kind of capacity," he said. He cited a study which forecast a market of 500,000 electric vehicles in Europe in 2015, while also stressing a key role for governments in developing electric cars. "There is a societal cost to pollution" that justified funding to help companies invest in infrastructure, technologies and product launches, Maini maintained. "Once people use it and feel the benefits, the volumes grow and prices come down and then you don't need support" any longer, he said.
Reva, which has produced electric vehicles since 2001, claims now to have solid experience in the field. Maini said 300,000 of its cars were already being used in 24 countries. Powered by a lithium-ion battery, the NXR is a three-door model designed to carry up to four passengers. It is expected to cost 15,000 euros (22,000 dollars), minus the battery which specialists note are one of the most expensive components, for an "inter-city" version. A pure city car with less range and traditional batteries is to be offered for less than 10,000 euros. Customers would be charged "a mobility fee" for battery rental, but they will be available for purchase as well. The prices were noticeably higher than the 2,055 dollar tag for the Indian produced Nano, which was launched in July and is currently the cheapest car in the world. Reva Electric Car, a Bangalore-based company, is a joint venture between India's Maini Group and AEV LLC of California.