Officials with General Motors say the company is making a joint investment to develop one of the world’s largest sources of the raw material necessary to create electric vehicle batteries.
The automaker is partnering with a corporation to build out a mine in Nevada that contains the world’s third largest deposit of lithium, a vital element in the batteries that power electric vehicles.
The Biden Administration recently required US automakers to source material for electric vehicles domestically, rather than go through a supply chain controlled by countries like China.
GM officials estimate the $650 million investment in the mine will help the automaker produce as many as one million electric vehicles by the time it is operational in 2026.
In recent months GM has made several investments in acquiring nickel and cobalt material, and reached new agreements with suppliers, to try and build a domestic electric battery supply chain.