Mitsubishi Seeking To Invest In Nickel And Lithium Projects Owing To EV Demand

Mitsubishi Corp is looking to invest in nickel and lithium projects to meet rising demand for EV batteries, while increasing copper output, according to the head of its metal operations on Thursday.

The move coincides with a global push by automakers to electrify their fleets, resulting in a rush for stable supplies of lithium, nickel, copper, and other critical minerals. By the end of the decade, demand is expected to outstrip supply.

"As global resource companies and others seek lithium and nickel, we are thinking about investing in the two metals," Satoshi Koyama, CEO of Mitsubishi's mineral resources group, said at an analysts meeting.

According to him, Canada and Australia could be nickel investment targets because they meet both the criteria of safety in terms of geopolitical risk and access to renewable energy in terms of decarbonisation.

Mitsubishi purchased a 15% stake in a joint venture with Giga Metals Corp last year to pursue the development of the Turnagain nickel deposit in Canada.

"We are verifying what kind of nickel projects will make it to the profitability line, given technical challenges and cost issues," Koyama explained.

Mitsubishi is also investigating several lithium projects.

To develop a new mine, it must include a downstream operation to process the metal into raw battery material, but whether this can be accomplished in Australia and North America will be the most difficult challenge, according to Koyama.

Mitsubishi and its Australian joint venture partner BHP Group have listed their Daunia and Blackwater metallurgical coal mines in Queensland's Bowen Basin for sale.

"If the deal goes through," Koyama said, "we may allocate the cash to growth segments such as copper and battery metals."

Mitsubishi, which owns a stake in five South American copper mines, including a 40% stake in Anglo American's Quellaveco mine in Peru, wants to increase copper output by expanding existing mines and investing in new promising projects.