Vancouver’s Mangrove Lithium has closed a $10 million USD Series A investment round led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures (BEV) with participation from existing investor BDC Capital’s Cleantech Practice (BDC).
Backed by Bill Gates, BEV invests in cutting-edge companies that will lead the world to net-zero emissions.
Benchmark Mineral Intelligence forecasts a global supply gap of 4.3 million tons of lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide by 2040. The supply of high-purity, battery grade lithium will be critical to the rapid adoption of electric vehicles (EV). A shortage could keep millions of EVs from being built.
Mangrove Lithium will use the investment to build its first operational, commercial-scale plant with the intention of expanding lithium refining capacity in the Western Hemisphere.
Mangrove has developed a feedstock-flexible, modular platform to produce battery-grade lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate. It does so cost-effectively by using brines, hard-rock, clays, and battery recycling streams to address this supply gap.
“A sufficient supply of high-purity lithium is critical if the world is going to reach over 70% EV penetration by 2040. There is a strong risk of this ambition being derailed if the emerging supply deficit is not addressed today,” said Mangrove CEO Saad Dara.
“Transitioning to EVs is a critical step in reducing global greenhouse gas emissions. Mangrove’s technology solves a huge constraint in electrifying the world’s vehicle fleet by enabling the lowest-cost, highest-purity lithium hydroxide – at a scale of hundreds of millions of vehicles – and can be applied throughout the supply chain,” said Carmichael Roberts, Breakthrough Energy Ventures.
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