SoftBank to invest $77m in Canadian lithium mining company Nemaska Lithium

Mining industry news : Japan‘s SoftBank Group has agreed to acquire a stake of up to 9.9% in Nemaska Lithium, a Canadian lithium mining company for C$ 99.1 million ($77.7 million).

Through the investment in the Canadian lithium mining company, SoftBank wants to tap into the emerging battery industry which is expected to grow further due to the increasing demand for smartphones and other communication gadgets along with the future Mobility Revolution to be seen in electric vehicles.

Nemaska Lithium is engaged in the Whabouchi mining project in the Canadian province of Quebec. Whabouchi is considered to be one the most abundant spodumene hard rock lithium deposits in the world.

The Canadian lithium mining company is constructing a lithium electrochemical plant at Shawinigan, which will process the spodumene concentrate extracted from the Whabouchi mining project to produce lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate by the end of 2020.

Pieces of lithium metal. Photo courtesy of Dnn87/Wikipedia.org.

Masayoshi Son – Chairman & CEO of SoftBank Group, commenting on SoftBank investment in the Canadian lithium mining company, said: “This investment in Nemaska is of monumental importance to the SoftBank Group’s strategy.

“We are extremely pleased to be further accelerating the Mobile Revolution, an era of IoT (Internet of Things) and electric vehicles enabled by the fusion of technology and energy storage.”

The Whabouchi mine is estimated to have an initial lithium mine life of around 33 years while the production from Nemaska Lithium’s electrochemical plant is anticipated to be about 33,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent per annum.

Guy Bourassa – President and CEO of Nemaska Lithium said: “As a global technology pioneer and leader, SoftBank’s culture of innovation melds very well with our own corporate values and is a clear endorsement of our approach to producing environmentally friendly, low-cost lithium compounds.”

SoftBank transaction with the Canadian lithium mining company Nemaska Lithium will be based on conditions like approval of the Toronto Stock Exchange among others according to the latest mining industry news.