GM announced last week that it had secured a new source of cost-competitive nickel and cobalt for Ultium battery cells after making a strategic investment in Queensland Pacific Metals of Australia.

As part of the agreement, GM is expected to invest up to US$69M in Queensland Pacific Metals for the development of its proposed Townsville Energy Chemicals Hub (TECH) Project in Northern Australia.  The TECH Project is expected to begin construction in 2023 and will see nickel laterite ore imported from New Caledonia for processing at the TECH facility using a patented refining and recycling process called the DNi ProcessTM. 

This is GM’s second deal of the year to secure Australian cobalt.  In April, Glencore and General Motors announced a multi-year sourcing agreement in which Glencore will supply GM with cobalt from its Murrin Murrin operation in Australia.  The carmaker continues to sign binding agreements to secure battery raw materials as it looks to develop capacity for 1M EVs annually in North America by the end of 2025.  In April, GM announced deals with Livent for battery-grade lithium hydroxide and LG Chem for 968kt of cathode material.