“At current market prices, the deposit, thought to contain 11 million tons of ore, is valued at roughly $1.5 billion.”
Lithium ore is worth only ~ $135 a ton?
For large fixed contracts, the annual average U.S. lithium carbonate price was $13,000 per metric ton in 2019, a 24% decrease from that of 2018.
Spot lithium hydroxide prices in China decreased from approximately $15,500 per ton at the beginning of the year to about $8,000 per ton in December.
https://pubs.usgs.gov › mcs20...PDF
Lithium Data Sheet - Mineral Commodity Summaries 2020
Lithium ore is worth only ~ $135 a ton?
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$28.557 kg as of 10/24
There is a huge difference between lithium ore, lithium carbonate and lithium metal.
Lithium ‘ore’ could contain only 0.005% of actual lithium metal per ton, and all the rest useless gangue rock, or perhaps some useful industrial minerals, or even gemstones (Aquamarine, other gem beryls and gem tourmaline have been found around Newry, in the pegmatite deposits that also have lithium minerals.)
And then it takes over five pounds of lithium carbonate concentrate to make a pound of lithium.
It takes a lot of work to get actual lithium out of a ton of lithium ore.
And the amount you end up with is a tiny fraction of a ton.
You know what ore is don’t you?