Representatives from the University of Minnesota and NRRI tour the 3D Visualization Lab at NLR, one of many research capabilities powered by NLR’s Kestrel supercomputer. Photo by Joe DelNero, National Laboratory of the Rockies.
By Lindsey McGuirk and Brooke Van Zandt The National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR) and the University of Minnesota’s Natural Resources Research Institute (NRRI) have launched a new initiative to demonstrate, at scale, the technologies that will secure supply chains for critical minerals and materials and power the next generation … [continued]
The Princeton University spinout will use the funding to expand sales and commercial deployments of its revolutionary brine-based lithium production platform in the U.S. and South America. PRINCETON, N.J. — Princeton Critical Minerals (PCM), a startup developing technologies to accelerate and increase lithium production yields from brine sources, has raised $16 … [continued]
Europe talks the talk on recycling. But can it walk the walk? The upcoming Circular Economy Act must prove we have what it takes. Our valuable battery waste is currently leaving Europe on ships headed halfway across the world. And we’re doing little to stop them. Whilst Europe manages to … [continued]
Chatgpt generated image of Europe navigating between China’s processing choke point and America’s federal volatility toward a more resilient battery minerals future.
The energy transition will not fail because the world runs out of useful minerals. It can be slowed, made more expensive, and made more fragile because the industrial systems that turn minerals into batteries, motors, power electronics, grid equipment, and vehicles are concentrated, politically exposed, and hard to rebuild. That … [continued]
The newly commissioned EnergyX demonstration facility in Texas is producing a domestic supply of lithium for EV batteries, energy storage, and other devices, loosening China's grip on the global lithium refining industry (cropped, courtesy of EnergyX via email).
The newly commissioned EnergyX demonstration facility in Texas is producing a domestic supply of lithium for EV batteries, energy storage, and other devices, loosening China’s grip on the global lithium refining industry.
CATL is the largest battery producer in the world. Any move it makes is noteworthy. While CATL has been making sodium-ion batteries for some time, production commitment has increased dramatically in 2026. CATL introduced its Naxtra line of batteries earlier in 2025 and has now announced plans for volume production … [continued]
CATL has begun commercial production of sodium-ion batteries, which perform very well in the cold and have a long life expectancy.
There are many questions about what is happening with sodium-ion batteries today. For example, to most people, news that CATL expects to commercialize sodium-ion batteries for EVs in 2026 with 310 mile range comes as quite a surprise. Background There are several different sodium-ion battery cathodes, just as there are … [continued]
CATL is the largest EV battery producer in the world. It continues to progress, with the latest news being a factory under construction in Spain and restarting of a lithium mine in China. CATL + Stellantis Battery Factory in Spain The US and Japan led on electric vehicles for a … [continued]
"Mudpots bubble and steam near the Salton Buttes lava domes, a volcanic area at the southeastern end of the Salton Sea, California." Image credit: Deborah Bergfeld, USGS.
Critical minerals, such as copper, cobalt, and silicon, are vital for energy technologies, but most critical minerals markets are less transparent than mature energy markets, such as crude oil or coal. Like other energy markets, many supply-side and demand-side factors influence pricing for these energy-relevant critical minerals, but critical minerals supply chains contain … [continued]
