Biden ups loan for ioneer's Nevada lithium mine in parting gesture

The U.S. Department of Energy has finalised a USD 996 million loan for Australia-based ioneer's Rhyolite Ridge lithium project, according to a Reuters report. The latest loan was seen as part of a bid to boost outgoing President Joe Biden’s environmental record, marking one of his last actions before handing over to Donald Trump. The new loan is an increase of the USD 296 million that had previously been pledged from a preliminary funding offer. 

With limited domestic lithium production of its own, the U.S currently relies heavily on supplies from China, which was something the outgoing leader had long sought to address during his tenure. The loan, which cannot be reversed by incoming President Donald Trump provides funds that will be used to build a lithium processing facility in rural Nevada, which it is projected will supply Ford and other electric vehicle manufacturers by 2028.

Part of the increased funding is down to new geological studies that reveal that the Rhyolite Ridge deposit, some 225 miles north of Las Vegas, contains more lithium than previously estimated. 

“That gave everyone more comfort that this was a far better resource than originally imagined,” a senior Energy Department official told Reuters.