A Humboldt County lithium mine has received a quarter-billion-dollar investment from a global investment firm.
Orion Resource Partners, a global investment firm focused on metals and materials, has invested $250 million into Lithium Americas Corp.’s Thacker Pass lithium mine project. The investment is going towards the construction and development of Phase 1, which is projected to produce 40,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate and is expected to finish in late 2027.
The Thacker Pass lithium mine in northern Nevada is the largest known lithium deposit in the United States and was approved by the Bureau of Land Management in 2021. That wasn’t without outcry from tribes in the area, who lost a legal bid to stave off the mine, which will be built on a site where tribes say an 1865 massacre occurred about 25 miles from the Nevada-Oregon border.
Orion has committed $195 million in senior unsecured convertible notes, which is a type of debt security that can be converted into shares of a company’s stock; they will pay $25 million in a production payment agreement, with Orion receiving payments based on minerals processed and gross revenue generated by the mine; and $30 million in convertible notes.
”Orion is excited to make this strategic investment in Lithium Americas to support the development of a domestic lithium supply chain to meet the rising demand across industries,” said Oskar Lewnowski, Orion’s founder and group CEO.
Potentially, Orion may evaluate the potential to support up to $500 million of development and construction of Phase 2. Phase 2 of the project is also projected to produce 40,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate.
Orion’s initial investment will satisfy all remaining requirements from the Department of Energy and General Motors Holdings LLC, satisfying equity capital fundraising requirements.
In October, the lithium mine received a $2.26 billion loan from the U.S. DOE to help finance the mine’s construction and $625 million in cash and credit from General Motors, which now owns a 38 percent stake in the project.
Thacker Pass mine is expected to create 1,800 construction jobs and 360 permanent, full-time operations jobs. It is expected to be fully operational by 2028, with a shelf life of 85 years.
Contact Emerson Drewes at edrewes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @EmersonDrewes on X.
