Arcadium Lithium has acquired the lithium metal business from Li-Metal in an all-cash deal worth $11m (C$15.26m).
The deal includes intellectual property and assets associated with lithium metal production, as well as a pilot production facility in Markham, Ontario, Canada, to commercialise metal production technology.
Additionally, a supply agreement has been established, ensuring that Arcadium Lithium will provide lithium metal to Li-Metal as part of a long-term offtake agreement.
Key personnel from Li-Metal’s lithium metal division will join Arcadium Lithium.
Li-Metal co-founder and chief technology officer Maciej Jastrzebski has agreed to a consulting arrangement with Arcadium Lithium to support the technology transfer and team integration.
Li-Metal CEO Keshav Kochhar said: “The capital generated from this sale allows for continued development of our ultra-thin, high energy density anodes for next-generation batteries. This investment will further solidify our commitment to pioneering innovations in battery technology.”
Arcadium expects the acquisition to enhance its position as a top global lithium metal producer.
With the acquisition, Arcadium expects to provide safer, more cost-effective and sustainable methods for lithium metal production utilising several grades of lithium carbonate feedstock.
The feedstock is produced by Arcadium in Argentina and complements its existing technologies at the Bessemer City site in North Carolina, US.
Arcadium Lithium president and CEO Paul Graves said: “This small but important acquisition gives us a platform to advance new and better process pathways for manufacturing lithium metal.
“The ability to produce lithium metal from lithium carbonate will give us additional flexibility to utilise our vertically integrated network of assets while reducing the need for third-party lithium metal.
“This will further enhance the competitiveness of our butyllithium and lithium specialty chemicals business and help us create the scale needed to meet the growing demand for next-generation battery materials developed from lithium metal.”
