{"text":[[{"start":10.5,"text":"A US start-up is planning to drill for lithium directly under battery factories that supply Volkswagen and BMW, in an audacious pitch to reduce Europe’s reliance on China for critical minerals."}],[{"start":21.65,"text":"Atana Elements, a critical minerals exploration company backed by Chilean mining company Antofagasta, has acquired 1.5mn acres of licences to explore lithium deposits in Salzgitter, Germany and Wroclaw, Poland."}],[{"start":36,"text":"Both sites include major battery factories, including one owned by Volkswagen’s battery subsidiary and one owned by LG Energy."}],[{"start":44.7,"text":"While lithium is an element that is plentiful in the earth’s crust, China holds a dominant position in the processing of lithium chemicals — something that Europe and the US are trying to change."}],[{"start":55.5,"text":"“You can see Europe getting worried about where all these minerals are coming from,” said Atana’s chief executive Tom Wilson, citing energy shocks caused by the war in Ukraine, trade war with China and the Strait of Hormuz crisis. "}],[{"start":68.7,"text":"“The supply is getting more and more fragmented with de-globalisation . . . and our focus is, can we find these minerals close to where the demand is,” he said."}],[{"start":77.45,"text":"The EU, including Germany, has been funding exploration projects to secure local supply chains of critical minerals using new technologies to process the metal from unconventional brine resources. That includes Vulcan Energy, which last year secured a $2.6bn financing package to build Europe’s largest lithium production project. "}],[{"start":97.95,"text":"Using historical geology data and AI technology, Atana identified areas that could hold significant reserves of critical minerals. The deposits were coincidentally discovered below the two major industrial plants that would require large amounts of lithium to produce batteries for some of the world’s largest carmakers. "}],[{"start":118.35,"text":"Wilson said: “You’ve got all these markets here that are worried about where their feedstock is going to come from and suddenly you’ve got these minerals that sit underneath them.”"}],[{"start":127.5,"text":"Established in Texas last year, Atana recently raised $27.5mn in seed funding led by Lowercarbon Capital, a US fund co-founded by Chris Sacca, who is known for his early-stage investments in Twitter and Uber."}],[{"start":141.45,"text":"The company was spun out of Lilac Solutions, which has developed technology to extract lithium from salty liquid brine deposits — not rocks — and is backed by the venture capital arm of BMW. "}],[{"start":154.79999999999998,"text":"“The car industry has historically been far more reluctant to go too far upstream,” Wilson said."}],[{"start":160.6,"text":"Carmakers rushed to back battery metal projects several years ago when lithium prices rose sharply, in order to secure their raw material supply chains. However, many planned projects have been delayed and some partnerships cancelled. "}],[{"start":174.45,"text":"Now with demand expected to surpass supplies, carmakers are again getting more involved in efforts to strengthen European energy security. Atana is also in discussions with venture capital arms of carmakers although none of them invested in the recent funding round. "}],[{"start":189.75,"text":"VW declined to comment, while BMW said its fund’s investment in Lilac “was not tied to any specific project or supply arrangement”."}],[{"start":197.95,"text":"According to International Energy Agency data, demand for lithium has risen an average of about 30 per cent annually this decade, compared with about 10 per cent growth in the 2010s."}],[{"start":208.85,"text":"Forecasts from Wood Mackenzie, Project Blue, Fastmarkets and Mysteel show annual lithium demand will jump to between 3.6mn and 6.3mn tonnes over the next decade, from 1.1mn tonnes last year."}],[{"start":224.7,"text":"In March, Wood Mackenzie warned existing supply projects were unlikely to meet demand beyond the mid-2030s."}],[{"start":232.6,"text":"Atana, which counts former Shell executive Brent Cheshire among its advisers, said it expects to be able to extract about 26mn tonnes of lithium in total from the two projects over roughly 20 years. Its figures are estimates based on legacy data, including oil and gas, geothermal and mining data for the region."}],[{"start":252.7,"text":"Analysts said the plans were at a very early stage and it was unclear how much lithium would ultimately be extracted."}],[{"start":259.84999999999997,"text":"Atana is waiting to get the local drilling permits, which will only be given if it meets environmental and safety standards."}],[{"start":266.84999999999997,"text":"“These [resources] are deeper and in jurisdictions that cost a bit more to develop, but there is certainly enthusiasm in Europe to develop these resources because of all the issues with critical mineral and supply chain security,” Wilson said."}],[{"start":290.1499999999999,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1780387688_3809.mp3"}