The Trump administration is pressing the developer of a massive Nevada lithium mine to give it an equity stake in the company as it considers whether to proceed with a promised $2.3 billion federal loan, according to an administration official and a Lithium Americas official familiar with the talks.
Project developer Lithium Americas is willing to sell the equity stake — likely amounting to less than 10 percent — but the Canada-based company and the government are still negotiating, the officials said. General Motors, which is a joint venture partner in the Thacker Pass lithium project, would have to agree to the terms of the deal, according to the administration official.
If finalized, the move would be the latest example of the Trump administration’s strategy to intervene in private sector companies. It previously took a 10 percent stake in chip maker Intel and a 15 percent share in rare earths producer MP Materials. And it received a “golden share” in U.S. Steel — giving it control over company decisions, such as blocking its planned closure of an Illinois plant.
The latest development in the lithium mine talks comes after officials on both sides of the aisle raised concerns that abandoning the project would harm U.S. efforts to counter China’s dominance over minerals supply. The project consists of a mine to tap the largest-known lithium resource in North America and a processing facility, which the Energy Department loan would support.
