The Department of Energy and Lithium Americas, the developer of a massive lithium mine and processing plant in Nevada, have agreed on changes to a multibillion-dollar federal loan that could allow the Trump administration to take a small equity stake in the company, according to a White House official.
The Canadian company has agreed to DOE’s proposal for restructuring the Biden-era loan, which was finalized last year to support the construction of a processing plant at the Thacker Pass mine in Humboldt County, the official told POLITICO’s E&E News.
The project, about 230 miles northeast of Reno, will initially pump out up to 40,000 metric tons of lithium carbonate each year for electric vehicle batteries.
But the White House official emphasized that discussions are still ongoing and that General Motors, which is part of a joint venture building the lithium project, will also need to sign off. GM declined to comment.
