An underground nickel mine could open in Minnesota to meet growing demand for electric vehicles. President Joe Biden supports the project as part of US energy security. But it raises concern: “It will devastate our lands” say opponents of the project.
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As the demand for nickel for electric car batteries continues to grow, the metal is becoming more coveted. It allows cars to have more autonomy.
But the United States produces less than 1 percent of the world’s nickel supply, and American electric vehicle makers depend on supplies from countries like Russia or China, something that hasn’t been in much demand since the war in Ukraine.
The need for nickel would be such that countries such as Indonesia, Australia, Canada, Brazil and New Caledonia, considered political neighbors by Washington, would not be enough. It is true that the US automaker lobby is insatiable with its global competitors.
The President of the United States in Detroit in front of an assembly line of GM electric cars.
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President Joe Biden then added nickel to the list of strategic minerals for US energy security. He wanted his country to revive the exploration and mining of nickel. A decision that is part of the commitments of the climate plan promulgated on 17 August. It foresees the transition to all-electric cars on the road in the United States.
President Biden specifically referred to the “Tamarack Nickel” project as a key part of this strategy.
For the powerful American mining companies, and in particular Freeport-McMoran or Phelps Dodge, the opportunity is too great. But also for another Australian giant, Rio Tinto.
Seizing the opportunity, an early mining company, Talon Metals, wants to turn 40 acres of farmland into the largest nickel mine in the United States, but some are concerned about the impact on the environment. Talon Metals is associated with Australian giant Rio Tinto.
Talon recently launched its nickel, copper and cobalt mining project. It is located in Tamarack, Minnesota, a town of about 100 inhabitants 210 kilometers north of Minneapolis, in one of the most sparsely populated and poorest regions of the United States.
Nickel Tamarack’s goal is to provide a domestic source, US-made nickel for use in the electric vehicle industry. Talon metallurgical company has drilled nearly 500 boreholes and claims to have found them “one of the best nickels in the world”. It promises the creation of 300 local jobs and of course tax breaks for local communities.
“This is a world class deposit”said Todd Malan, director of external affairs and head of climate strategy for Talon Metals, in an interview with CBS News.
With successful drilling, Talon Metals hopes to open the mine in 2026, when the only other operating nickel mine in the United States is scheduled to close. The company already has an agreement to supply nickel to Tesla. The project has yet to be approved by the state of Minnesota.
According to Talon, the future mine site has an 8.6-million-ton resource containing 148,000 tons of 1.73% grade nickel, excluding byproducts, primarily copper and cobalt.
The Thousand Lakes region of Minnesota near Tamarack
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Opponents are mobilizing in the region. “Where is the science that says it is safe and there will be no pollution?” said Melanie Benjamin, who chairs the Ojibwe Mille Lacs Association, whose tribal lands are less than four kilometers from the proposed mine site.
Mélanie Benjamin is concerned about the pollution affecting the fragile wetlands where indigenous tribes have been fishing, hunting and harvesting wild rice for generations.
Talon Metals is under pressure from environmental groups in Minneapolis and Tamarack residents who are also concerned about possible sulfuric acid runoff from the mine into now protected waterways.
In response, industrialist Talon Metals said it will process the nickel out of state and that the deep underground mine poses little risk to the environment.
“We fully understand the context and history”said Todd Malan of Talon. “We understand how precious this environment is.”
Yet many find the mining company’s promises hard to believe.
“Asking Talon Metals or any mining company how they are going to take care of the community environment is a bit like asking the fox how he takes care of the chicken coop”concludes Thomas Anderson who resides in Tamarack, in response to CBS News.
An opinion that however risks not weighing much in the face of mining companies driven by the energy transition and by the needs of an American car industry in full transformation towards the all-electric. The nickel rush has just begun.
TESLA-brand electric vehicles in a corporate parking lot in California
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LME Nickel on 11/28/2022 at 13:30 GMT: $25,317/tonne – 0.39%
