Mercedes-Benz to Buy 10k Tonnes Lithium from Canada's Rock Tech

Leading automaker Mercedes-Benz AG and Canada's lithium development company Rock Tech Lithium have announced that they will enter into an agreement which will provide for a strategic partnership to produce high-quality lithium hydroxide for the automaker and its battery suppliers.

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Under the intended binding agreement, Rock Tech has agreed to deliver up to 10,000 tonnes per year of its planned production to the premium manufacturer and its partners starting in 2026. The two companies made the announcement during a visit to Canada by a business delegation from Germany led by Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

Mercedes-Benz is looking to become fully electric by the end of the decade. From 2025 onwards, the luxury carmaker plans to make all the newly launched vehicle architectures all-electric. To help make this a reality, Mercedes-Benz intends to enter into a strategic partnership with Rock Tech, lasting for at least five years and an option to prolong the contract.

From 2026 onwards, it is envisaged that Rock Tech will contribute up to 10,000 tonnes of lithium hydroxide annually to Mercedes-Benz and its battery partners, starting with a qualification period and after quality and sustainability benchmarks have been met.

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Rock Tech expects to become a central implementation partner for the automaker and all its electric and carbon-neutral strategies.

With the envisaged strategic partnership, both companies aim to ensure that the amount of battery-grade lithium meets Mercedes-Benz's growing demand in order to scale up electric vehicle production.

Stepping Up The Process

Rock Tech is currently developing its first converter project in Guben, eastern Germany. So far, no other refinery of its kind exists in Europe. Rock Tech aims to close this gap in supply of lithium and to make regional supply chains more resilient by refining spodumene into high quality lithium hydroxide at this converter by the end of 2024. This would create a short supply chain in Mercedes-Benz's origin and is expected to further strengthen the partnership.