LG Energy Solution enters into a 10-year lithium agreement in Arkansas beginning in 2029.

      LG Energy Solution has entered into a binding 10-year take-or-pay agreement to acquire 8,000 tonnes annually of battery-grade lithium carbonate from Smackover Lithium in Arkansas, a joint venture where Norway’s state-controlled Equinor holds 45%, starting in 2029. Earlier, in January 2022, LG made a similar offtake agreement with Vulcan Energy in Germany, scheduled to commence deliveries in 2025.

      The American lithium purchased by LG will consist of 8,000 tonnes a year of battery-grade carbonate beginning in 2029, according to Bloomberg. The supplier has Norwegian ties; Smackover Lithium is a joint venture with Standard Lithium operating 55% of it, while Equinor owns the remaining 45%.

      Equinor itself is not a mining enterprise; it is two-thirds owned by the Norwegian state, which invested in two projects by Standard Lithium in May 2024, paying $30 million for past expenses and development support.

      The lithium is situated deep underground, approximately two miles beneath Arkansas, existing in brine within limestone and extracted chemically rather than through traditional mining methods.

      This binding take-or-pay agreement represents the second of its kind for the project, following a similar deal for 8,000 tonnes with trader Trafigura in March, and together they account for about 90% of the planned offtake.

      The vision has expanded beyond just automotive applications. “Data centers cannot function without energy storage,” stated Standard Lithium CEO David Park in a Bloomberg interview.

      In Europe, the geological conditions resemble those of Lithium resources, yet the industry is lacking. According to the European Commission's raw materials factsheet, the EU contributes less than 0.1% to global lithium mine production.

      Processing shows an even worse scenario. The same factsheet indicates a 100% dependency on imports for processing, compared to the Critical Raw Materials Act's goal of having 40% of consumption met by EU processing by 2030.

      Vulcan Energy’s Lionheart project in the Upper Rhine Valley is a similar scale initiative, aiming to produce 24,000 tonnes a year of lithium hydroxide from geothermal brine, which impacts Europe's battery ambitions.

      LG was the first to secure lithium from that project, signing a binding agreement with Vulcan in January 2022 for 41,000 to 50,000 tonnes over five years, with deliveries anticipated to begin in 2025.

      So far, those deliveries have not yet started. Vulcan reached its final investment decision in December 2025, began construction of its Frankfurt facility in April, and aims to achieve commercial production by 2028, in a market transformed by Northvolt.

      This presents a notable comparison: the European contract signed four years ago was expected to deliver last year, while the American contract signed recently is slated for 2029.

      Recycling is progressing more swiftly than traditional drilling. The first industrial battery recycling facility in Europe opened this year, and the 25% recycling benchmark established by the Act is the only one that does not require the drilling of new boreholes.