Issue 21: California lithium commission releases draft report, makes 44 recommendations
In its draft report, made public on September 21, the Lithium Valley Commission makes no mention of the proposed battery manufacturing facility in the region.
Fresh this Week
Local Community Groups Visit CTR’s Hell’s Kitchen
In a LinkedIn post this week, Controlled Thermal Resources CEO Rod Colwell lauded the visit of various leaders in the Imperial Valley to the site of its lithium extraction facility, Hell’s Kitchen.
“Over 30 representatives from local community groups, agencies, and non-profit organizations were in attendance to discuss the future of Lithium Valley,” Colwell said in the post.
According to Colwell, the visit was organized by Luis Olmedo, executive director of El Comite Civico del Valle, a nonprofit environmental group based in Brawley.
“I look forward to continuing the great work we are all doing to encourage meaningful and lasting relationships,” Colwell said.
Is Samsung Coming to the Imperial Valley?
A new report from the Desert Sun today hints at the prospect of having a major battery manufacturer from South Korea come to the Imperial Valley in pursuit of its lithium minerals.
Though none of the three major South Korean battery manufacturers — Samsung SDI, LG Energy Solution and SK On — would confirm such plans to the Desert Sun, comments from executives and one Imperial County Supervisor indicate something is brewing behind the scenes.
"There is a lot of interest from the South Korean equipment manufacturers," Rod Colwell, CEO of Controlled Thermal Resources, told the Desert Sun. Though Colwell did not specify what he meant by that, the Desert Sun reported that CTR officials have said that “a range of options are being discussed, including building a battery plant or plants next to the company’s planned lithium extraction and processing site” also known as Hell’s Kitchen.
Imperial County Supervisor Ryan Kelley told the Desert Sun that “a delegation from a South Korean governmental research institute familiar with mineral extraction will be visiting Imperial County next week.”
Samsung SDI for its part has an arrangement with electric vehicle maker Stellantis to build a battery manufacturing facility in Kokomo, Indiana. And Stellantis most recently agreed to buy battery-grade lithium hydroxide from CTR out of the Imperial Valley. Whether an agreement between Samsung SDI and CTR materializes in the future is yet to be determined.
Earlier this week, SK Group Chairman Tae-won Chey met with U.S. President Joe Biden to announce his commitment to put more than $50 billion in green-energy investments in the U.S. SK Group is the parent company of SK On, a major electric vehicle battery manufacturer with plans to build plants in Kentucky and Tennessee.
Will, perhaps, SK On come to the Lithium Valley some day?
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Between the Lines
Lithium Valley Commission Draft Report: What’s in It, What’s Not
California’s blue-ribbon commission on lithium this week released a draft of its report after a lengthy delay that has pushed its October 1 deadline further back into the end of the year.
In its draft report, the Lithium Valley Commission makes 44 recommendations around eight different topics ranging from technical aspects of lithium extraction to economic and environmental impacts to community and tribal input.
Most notably, the 109-page document omits any mention of Statevolt, the proposed 54 GWh gigafactory facility that was announced in April. Statevolt is the new U.S.-based company from Lars Carlstrom, a Swedish entrepreneur, who is said to be interested in buying lithium from Controlled Thermal Resources to make electric vehicle batteries in Imperial County.
Should those plans materialize, the battery manufacturing facility would employ thousands of local workers and introduce new environmental and transportation challenges in Imperial County — none of which are addressed in the commission’s report.
The Lithium Valley Commission is a 14-member panel of environmental, political, industry and tribal leaders that has been tasked with reviewing, investigating and analyzing opportunities and benefits for lithium recovery and use in the state.
The authors of the draft report say that the findings and recommendations they make come from consulting with a wide range of geothermal and lithium experts as well as input from the various communities most likely to be impacted including tribes and fence-line cities like Niland and Calipatria. The report said it achieved this over the course of 20 public meetings in two years.
While the draft report is now public, the California Energy Commission says it will release a Spanish-version of the report in the coming weeks. After that, the CEC will give the public 30 days to comment or respond to the report’s findings both in person and in writing.
The public will be able to make comments in person at upcoming meetings and workshops in October. Written comments can be made online via the commission’s website by 5 p.m. 30 days after the Spanish version of the draft report is posted.
Most of the 44 recommendations that the commission makes in its report urge the state to provide more funding to agencies overseeing environmental impact reviews, education, and business developments.
Here are some of its most notable recommendations in the report:
Pages 36-33: The commission recommends that Imperial County include Riverside County in its state-mandated health impact assessment.
“Regarding the one-time $5 million allocation to Imperial County in the fiscal year 2022–2023 state budget: Encourage Imperial County to include eastern Riverside County in the mandated health impact assessment related to geothermal energy development and lithium recovery, processing, production, and related manufacturing activities.”
Pages 35-40: The commission recommends that the Imperial Irrigation District (IID) be required to publicly disclose how much water will be used for lithium extraction projects.
“Require the IID to identify the specific water needs for anticipated project comprehensively, not in isolation, but considering all the known developers’ plans to bring new geothermal power plants on-line by 2024 with facilities using DLE technology to recover lithium from geothermal brine.”
Pages 40-42: The commission recommends the construction of more geothermal energy plants in the Imperial Valley.
“State transmission planning entities and local utilities should pursue making investments for transmission upgrades to address transmission needs for geothermal energy delivery from the Imperial Valley area over the next 10 years. Planning should consider developers’ plans to begin bringing new geothermal power plants on-line in 2024 with collocated DLE from geothermal brine.”
Pages 45-52: The commission recommends that workers and first-responders be informed of the materials used in lithium extraction facilities and the products made.
“Ensure safety for all workers, community members, and first responders, by requiring that lithium recovery and processing facilities make information available and provide education to residents and affected businesses and service providers regarding the materials and processes used in their facilities, the final and intermediate products created, and any waste streams that must be managed.”
Pages 52-64: The commission recommends project labor agreements, or PLAs, between lithium recovery and production project developers and labor unions and trades.
“Require that lithium recovery and production project developers enter into project labor agreements with unions and trades, as well as appropriate state or local agencies to support the development of educational pathways to develop a skilled and trained workforce, including internships, apprenticeships, certificate, and degree programs for local residents. Project labor agreements should include coordination with a community advisory council created to advise development of community benefits agreements.”
Pages 52-64: The commission recommends that future environmental health impact reviews should include communities near the Salton Sea in Riverside County.
“Mandate that Imperial County require developers of lithium recovery complete health impact assessments at the time they seek permits and conduct monitoring throughout project operations. When conducting health impact assessments, project developers should be required to coordinate with and support state agencies conducting Salton Sea restoration, air quality monitoring, and public health assessments.”
Pages 52-64: The commission recommends that the IID make use of its royalties from geothermal resources to lower energy rates for disadvantaged communities in its service area.
“Encourage IID to use royalties from geothermal resources, including recovery of minerals from geothermal brine, to reduce electricity rates for SB 535 disadvantaged communities in their service territory.”
Pages 52-64: The commission recommends that lithium project developers enter into legally binding community benefit agreements.
“Mandate that lithium recovery project developers enter into legally binding community benefits agreements with the input of local agencies and businesses, as well as community representatives and residents. Require and fund the formation of a community advisory council to provide input and guidance on community benefits agreements and provide funding to support community capacity building.”
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