*Wow - Did not know that, still learning TSE ropes atm, At 1st glance, it looks amazing, thanks Cruiser
Even if you're Not into, or have much time for Charts because you're too busy researching the shit outta everything else atm like, why
France should start mining lithium at home, minister says
France should start exploiting its own lithium resources to meet increased demand stemming from a shift away from fossil fuels, Barbara Pompili, the country’s environment minister, said in a video interview published on Thursday by business daily Les Echos.
France needs “long-term import contracts … but also to get lithium at home,” Pompili told the paper in the interview.
“If we want to become a society which emits less greenhouse gases, we have to face the consequences: We need materials like lithium.”
Lithium, used in batteries for electric vehicles and smartphones, is seen as a key resource for the 21st century.
Electric cars are a key plank of European Union plans to cut emissions, and the bloc is trying to reduce reliance on battery supplies from Asia through projects with European-based carmakers and battery specialists.
But almost all the critical minerals currently come from outside the continent, with China dominating the global supply chain.
Paris’s lithium supply also relies on French miner Eramet, which is seeking to ramp up production at a major deposit it owns in Argentina.
Les Echos on Thursday said France had detected domestic lithium deposits and first exploration efforts were ongoing in the eastern Alsace region.
“If it shows we have our own lithium at home, we must take the responsibility to extract it on our territory because we will do so under good conditions,” Pompili said.
Elsewhere in Europe, domestic mining efforts have faced protests. In Serbia, anti-mining protests have become a headache for the government, which in response to fierce public opposition revoked licences for Rio Tinto.
Accelerating sales of electric vehicles have pushed demand for lithium to multi-year highs, along with other critical commodities such as nickel and cobalt.
Analysts say a lack of investment in capacity due to sliding prices in the three years to 2021 means a supply deficit is likely to last for some years.
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*Can someone remind me who that French speaking Country in Africa with Ship loads of Lithium is again
*In other News, It's great to see Nissan getting their Shit together and their House in order for the EV Future, as
Nissan to make two new EVs in $A700m factory upgrade
Japanese carmaker Nissan announced on Friday it will make two all-new electric vehicles under both the Nissan badge and that of its luxury brand Infiniti at its Canton Vehicle Assembly Plant in Mississippi, where it currently makes three utes and the Altima sedan.
A $US500 million ($A700 million) upgrade for its Canton facility will see 2,000 employees retrained in readiness for the era of electrification as the carmaker works towards 15 all-electric models by 2030 under its $US18 billion ($A25 billion) Nissan Ambition 2030 plan.
Nissan currently builds the Altima sedan, as well as the Frontier utility truck (known as a pickup in the US and ute in Australia), and two Titan ute models at the Canton car factory, employing 5,000 staff.
The carmaker did not specify what the two new models will be, but images shared hint at new electric crossover models.
An
all-electric Nissan ute concept teased in November doesn’t look to be one of the new EV models going from the images shared by Nissan.
Speaking on the new announcement, COO for Nissan Ashwani Gupta said,
“Today’s announcement is the first of several new investments that will drive the EV revolution in the United States.”
“Nissan making a strong investment in Canton’s future, bringing the latest technology, training and process to create a truly best-in-class EV manufacturing team.”
With a target to reach 40% EVs by 2030, Nissan’s Canton upgrade will play an important role.
The carmaker already makes the Nissan Leaf at its Smyrna, Tennessee factory with 14,239 sales in 2021 – the fifth best year of the now twelve-year-old vehicle which has been around since the early days of the electric vehicle market.
The Driven is Australia’s most-read electric vehicle news site, covering the latest EV stories both in Australia and overseas.
thedriven.io
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Nourriture pour la pensée 
Frank
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