GM is delaying a $330 million lithium investment in Nevada

General Motors (GM) will delay part of a mining investment in Nevada worth $330 million, as announced by partner Lithium Americas this week.

Lithium Americas shared the news in a press release on Friday, saying that GM agreed to delay the $330 million investment into developing Thacker Pass in Nevada. The partnership closed on the first tranche of the investment in February, as part of a larger plan for a project initially valued at $650 million in the announcement last year.

The Thackers Pass mining project site is expected to contain enough lithium to build one million electric vehicle (EV) batteries annually.

Lithium Americas provides an update on General Motors investment https://t.co/CxqgA6jh3H “Our relationship with GM has been built on collaboration and a mutual goal to develop a robust domestic lithium supply chain,” said @jdevans4005, President & CEO of $LAC. #lithium #Nevada pic.twitter.com/rxHGeTx6ms

— Lithium Americas (@LithiumAmericas) August 30, 2024

Lithium Americas has also said it’s considering different structures for the second tranche of the investment, and the deadline for closing the deal is now being extended to December 20. If GM doesn’t close on the deal by then, the company says it will have to grant additional rights to the automaker.

Part of the second tranche agreement is the successful garnering of a $2.26 billion loan agreement from the U.S. Department of Energy, which the company says it’s currently rushing to complete ahead of the 2024 U.S. presidential election.

The announcement is also the latest of a handful of EV investment delays from GM.

Last week, GM and Samsung SDI announced delays to an upcoming battery factory in Indiana, now expected to begin producing battery cells in 2027 rather than in 2026. GM pointed to “market conditions and contract details” as the reason for the delay, echoing other recent statements from the company.

In July, GM Executive VP of Global Manufacturing and Sustainability Gerald Johnson emphasized the automaker’s need for flexibility with its EV investments, even though it was still expected to operate on its investments despite the timelines shifting.

“We’re still confident in those investments, but we do have to be agile enough to time and/or retime some of our startup dates so that we are hitting the market with the right product at the right time frame,” Johnson said. “The plans that we laid out a year ago, we have to be able to look at the market today and make adjustments and act accordingly. I think that’s smart business.”

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