Vancouver-based Lithium America develops one of the world’s largest lithium mines in northern Nevada.
Released on October 1, 2025
The US government has acquired a minority stake in Lithium America, the company that develops one of the world’s largest lithium mines in northern Nevada.
The Department of Energy will win 5% stake in the Vancouver-based minor. It also costs a 5% stake in Thacker Pass Lithium Mining Project, a joint venture with General Motors.
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Thacker Pass is considered important in reducing the dependence on China for lithium, a key material used to produce high-tech batteries used in mobile phones, electric vehicles and renewable energy. Both Republicans and Democrats support the project and narrow down the production gap. China is the world’s largest lithium processor.
US energy secretary Chris Wright said in a statement that the Lithium America contract “helps strengthening the domestic supply chain, helping to reduce the dependence of critical minerals on foreign enemies and ensure better management of the US taxpayer dollars.”
Thacker Pass is expected to produce 40,000 tons of battery lithium carbonate per year in the first phase, sufficient to power 800,000 electric vehicles.
Lithium America’s equity interests are the latest example of President Donald Trump’s administration’s direct intervention in private companies. The government has acquired a 10% stake in Intel through billions of conversions in government funds and pledges previously granted. The administration spent $400 million in taxpayer money on MP material stock in July, making the US government a rare earth miner based in Las Vegas. Trump also signed a deal with Nvidia and AMD to cut revenues by 15% by selling certain chips to the US government to China.
Lithium Americas said Wednesday that, in principle, a non-binding contract with the Department of Energy has been reached to advance its first $435 million draw on federal loans. The department has agreed to postpone its $182 million debt services over the first five years of the loan.
“Big Opportunity”
The White House and Canada’s lithium Americas appeared to be trading late last month. This is because the parties agreed to a change in a federal loan of approximately $2.3 billion, which allows the project to move forward to extract the silver-white metal used in electric vehicle batteries. GM has pledged more than $900 million to help develop the Tucker Pass. It holds enough lithium to build one million electric vehicles each year.
Wedbush analyst Dan Ives, called Thacker, passes the US as a “big opportunity” to reduce lithium’s dependence on China and other foreign enemies.
“Even though we have some of the largest deposits, the US produced less than 1% of the world’s lithium supply, but this transaction will help reduce dependence on foreign enemies for key minerals, strengthen the domestic supply chain, and grow better stewardship of the US taxpayer dollars with lithium production over the next few years,” he writes.
Lithium America stocks surged more than 30% on Wednesday.
