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Biden Administration Approves Lithium Mine in Race to Add Supply

Nevada is home to some of the country’s largest lithium deposits. According to Eos, the tectonic crust shifted about 17 million years ago, pushing volcanic rocks upward and forming basins filled with sediment and water. Streams now flow into these basins, where water pools no outlet to the oceans. Volcano sedimentary runoff is concentrated in brines, where lithium can be found. It can also be sourced from the clay of Nevada’s calderas or volcanic depressions left empty after eruptions. For example, Lithium Americas claims its Thacker Pass Lithium Mine in the McDermitt Caldera is the site of “the world’s largest known measured lithium Resource and Reserve,” for which it received a $2.26 billion loan from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office in October. Meanwhile, there are two advanced lithium projects in the U.S. located in Esmeralda County, Nevada: Century Lithium’s Angel Island Mine and Ioneer’s Rhyolite Ridge Lithium-Boron Project. The latter expects to power 50 million electric vehicles over its 26-year lifetime, generating 400 to 500 construction jobs and 250 to 300 operations jobs.  

(Bloomberg) —

The Biden administration has issued its first approval for a lithium mine, ramping up efforts to shift the US critical minerals supply chain away from China. 

Ioneer Ltd.’s Rhyolite Ridge Lithium-Boron Project in Nevada has received its federal permit from the Bureau of Land Management, according to a company statement Thursday. Ioneer is planning to start construction in 2025 and is targeting first production in 2028.

The approval comes as the US races to build domestic supplies of critical minerals that are key to the energy transition. China has long dominated global output of commodities crucial to electric vehicles, and lithium is a key ingredient in rechargeable batteries. Another lithium mining project in Nevada, Lithium America Corp.’s Thacker Pass, won approval from the Trump administration in 2021.

Much of the support for American production has come from the government. Ioneer, a prospective supplier to Ford Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp., last year received a conditional commitment from the Department of Energy for up to $700 million. In March, the DOE also offered a conditional loan of $2.26 billion to Lithium Americas.

Read more: US Offers Record $2.26 Billion Loan for Nevada Lithium Plan          

© 2025 Bloomberg L.P.

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