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does the $3.1bn Orocobre and Galaxy merger mean for the lithium industry?","what-does-the-3-1bn-orocobre-and-galaxy-merger-mean-for-the-lithium-industry","article/what-does-the-3-1bn-orocobre-and-galaxy-merger-mean-for-the-lithium-industry",{"_uid":557,"date":558,"tags":559,"editor":560,"content":570,"excerpt":662,"featured":50,"reporter":663,"_editable":667,"component":668,"seo_title":553,"categories":669,"visibility":675,"author_company":49,"featured_image":676,"seo_description":662,"author_full_name":49,"author_job_title":49,"formattedDate":681,"formattedArticleDate":682},"5d18970e-cb4a-49a2-88e3-cce34a0e8ca3","2021-04-21 00:00",[],[561],{"slug":562,"name":563,"content":564},"matthew-bird","Matthew Bird",{"job_title":565,"image":566,"bio":568,"linkedin":569},"Senior Editor - Supply Chains & Data Visualisation",{"filename":567},"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/512x512/14738033ec/matthew-bird.jpeg","Matthew writes, edits and produces content for Benchmark Intelligence and Benchmark Source across the whole mine to grid supply chain. He also acts as a liaison to the press. He has a PhD in electrochemistry from the University of Nottingham.","https://www.linkedin.com/in/birdmatthew/",{"type":571,"content":572},"doc",[573,580,585,590,595,600,607,612,617,622,627,632,637,642,647,652,657],{"type":574,"attrs":575,"content":576},"paragraph",{"textAlign":49},[577],{"text":578,"type":579},"Australian-owned lithium producers Orocobre and Galaxy Resources announced the merger of the two companies on 19 April 2021, with the newly established entity set to become the fifth most valuable producer of the critical battery mineral by market capitalisation.","text",{"type":574,"attrs":581,"content":582},{"textAlign":49},[583],{"text":584,"type":579},"Orocobre will acquire 100% of the shares in Galaxy, forming a merged company with a $3.1 billion (AUD 4 billion) market capitalisation.",{"type":574,"attrs":586,"content":587},{"textAlign":49},[588],{"text":589,"type":579},"News of the merger arrives as lithium prices continue to rally, with Benchmark’s battery grade lithium carbonate price (EXW China) up 103.4% y-t-d, incentivising producers to search for expansion opportunities to capitalise on demand from the booming electric vehicle battery supply chain.",{"type":574,"attrs":591,"content":592},{"textAlign":49},[593],{"text":594,"type":579},"Hard rock, brine and chemical assets in varying stages of development across Australia, Argentina, Canada, and Japan will be consolidated by the merger, bringing together a portfolio of upstream and downstream projects.",{"type":574,"attrs":596,"content":597},{"textAlign":49},[598],{"text":599,"type":579},"The combined entity will overtake Pilbara and jump to the world’s fifth largest lithium company by production, according to Benchmark’s Lithium forecast, with Orocobre and Galaxy’s active assets delivering a combined capacity of around 35,000 tpa LCE.",{"type":601,"attrs":602,"content":604},"heading",{"level":603,"textAlign":49},4,[605],{"text":606,"type":579},"Opportunity to diversify upstream and downstream asset portfolio",{"type":574,"attrs":608,"content":609},{"textAlign":49},[610],{"text":611,"type":579},"Currently, Orocobre operates its Argentinian brine asset, Olaroz, in which it has a 66.5% share. A further 25% of the project is owned by Toyota Tsusho, who act as a selling agent for the material in Asia, and the final 8.5% is owned by Jujuy Energia y Mineria Sociedad del Estado (JEMSE), intended to provide the provincial Argentinian government in Jujuy state with an interest in the project.",{"type":574,"attrs":613,"content":614},{"textAlign":49},[615],{"text":616,"type":579},"Galaxy operates its spodumene mine Mt Cattlin in Western Australia, which it wholly owns.",{"type":574,"attrs":618,"content":619},{"textAlign":49},[620],{"text":621,"type":579},"Additionally, Galaxy will move into detailed engineering for the process plant and continue early construction activities at their Sal de Vida brine project, located in Salta Province, Argentina, neighbouring Orocobre’s operating Argentine asset. Furthermore, James Bay, a Galaxy spodumene asset located in Quebec, Canada, is in earlier stages of development, having recently undergone a preliminary economic assessment.",{"type":574,"attrs":623,"content":624},{"textAlign":49},[625],{"text":626,"type":579},"Expertise from Orocobre’s Olaroz could provide the means to accelerate the construction of brine developments at Sal de Vida, with Olaroz itself in the midst of Stage II expansion construction. In addition, Orocobre has a stake in Advantage Lithium, including a joint venture agreement at the neighbouring Cauchari site just south of Olaroz, which could see the 3 assets form a new axis for brine production in the Jujuy and Salta provinces.",{"type":574,"attrs":628,"content":629},{"textAlign":49},[630],{"text":631,"type":579},"As well as the strategic advantages presented by the consolidation of several mine operations, both companies bring a track record of chemical conversion to the table.",{"type":574,"attrs":633,"content":634},{"textAlign":49},[635],{"text":636,"type":579},"Galaxy first started a lithium carbonate facility in Zhangjiagang, Jiangsu province, China in 2012, which was subsequently purchased by Tianqi Lithium. In contrast, Orocobre has spent the past six years refining its brine production process at Olaroz and developed a strategy to move into the lithium hydroxide market alongside partner Toyota Tsusho with the construction of a 10,000 tpa facility in Naraha, due to begin commissioning during Q1 2022.",{"type":601,"attrs":638,"content":639},{"level":603,"textAlign":49},[640],{"text":641,"type":579},"Can consolidating capital and expertise provide some strength against the tightening market?",{"type":574,"attrs":643,"content":644},{"textAlign":49},[645],{"text":646,"type":579},"The merging of these two lithium producers could provide some competition for the old guard in the industry, as the bullish price environment may begin to see smaller, previously capital-starved players compete in an increasingly tight market amid the ramping up of the global battery arms race.",{"type":574,"attrs":648,"content":649},{"textAlign":49},[650],{"text":651,"type":579},"The merger follows in the footsteps of Pilbara’s acquisition of neighbouring spodumene producer Altura in Q1 2021, another move that will challenge the incumbent axis of lithium leaders.",{"type":574,"attrs":653,"content":654},{"textAlign":49},[655],{"text":656,"type":579},"Additionally, the joint expertise these companies hold, in both brine and hard-rock production, may allow for the acceleration and improvement of some of the key projects in the entities’ holding, with both companies managing multiple plans throughout the development spectrum, from greenfield opportunities to brownfield expansions.",{"type":574,"attrs":658,"content":659},{"textAlign":49},[660],{"text":661,"type":579},"The success and synergies achieved by these future developments will be crucial to the joint entities’ success, and the efficiency at which these assets are brought to market and utilised will determine whether the merged major is set to play a key role in the lithium ion supply chain.","Australian-owned lithium producers Orocobre and Galaxy Resources announced the merger of the two companies on 19 April 2021, with the newly established entity set to become the fifth most valuable producer of the critical battery mineral by market capitalisation. Orocobre will acquire 100% of the shares in Galaxy, forming a merged company with a $3.1 […]",[664],{"slug":562,"name":563,"content":665},{"job_title":565,"image":666,"bio":568,"linkedin":569},{"filename":567},"\u003C!--#storyblok#{\"name\": \"article\", \"space\": \"\", \"uid\": \"5d18970e-cb4a-49a2-88e3-cce34a0e8ca3\", \"id\": \"\"}-->","article",[670,673],{"slug":671,"name":672},"critical-minerals","Critical Minerals",{"slug":674,"name":8},"lithium","private",{"id":49,"alt":677,"name":677,"focus":677,"title":677,"source":677,"filename":678,"copyright":677,"fieldtype":679,"meta_data":680,"is_external_url":51},"","https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/0a53ca59d4/bm-orocobre.png","asset",{"alt":677,"title":677,"source":677,"copyright":677},"Apr 21, 2021","21st April 2021",[],[],1792688591855]