About two weeks ago, General Motors announced a major investment into a new V8 engine and EV components. The American automaker has now announced another major investment in the form of a $650 million joint project with Lithium Americas Corporation at the Thacker Pass mine in Nevada. It is the largest known source of lithium in the United States and the third largest in the world.
GM’s plan is to extract more lithium with Lithium Americas’ help to secure production of future electric vehicles in the coming years. According to preliminary estimates, the lithium extracted and processed from Thacker Pass could support the production of up to one million electric vehicles per year. Lithium carbonate will be used in Ultium battery cells in models such as the Chevrolet Silverado EV and Cadillac Celestiq.
The $650 million investment will be split between two tranches. The former will be held until there is an outcome of the Record of Decision decision currently pending in US District Court, which is expected later this year. The second phase will be made into Lithium Americas US division. Lithium extraction in Nevada is expected to begin in the second half of 2026. An estimated 1,500 new jobs will be created – 1,000 in construction and 500 in operations.
“GM has secured all of the battery materials we need to build more than 1 million EVs annually in North America by 2025 and our future production will increasingly be based on domestic sources such as the site in Nevada we are developing with Lithium Americas,” the CEO GM Mary comments Barra. “Directly sourcing critical EV raw materials and components from suppliers in North America and free trade agreement countries helps make our supply chain safer, helps us manage cell costs, and creates jobs.”
General Motors currently produces electric vehicles at four plants – two Michigan plants, one Tennessee plant, and one Ontario plant. This new investment in Nevada comes after major projects in the EV raw materials, refined materials, and components supply chains in California, Texas, Ohio, and Quebec.
