The CEO of Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA), Elon Muskrevealed on Tuesday that it was entirely possible that the EV leader would buy a mining company to meet its needs for lithium and other raw materials needed to manufacture rechargeable batteries.
What happened
The billionaire entrepreneur, speaking remotely at the Financial Times’ Future of Automotive conference, said Tesla could go further and buy a mining company as part of a strategic move.
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“It’s not out of the question…to extract or refine, there are concrete possibilities,” he said.
“This will allow us to overcome the limits to accelerating the global transition to sustainable energy.”
Why this matters
Musk’s comment comes a month after he suggested that Tesla could directly mine and refine lithium on a large scale, barring market cost reductions.
The price of lithium has reached insane levels! Tesla may actually have to get into large-scale direct mining and refining unless costs improve.
There is no shortage of the element itself, as lithium is almost everywhere on Earth, but the rate of extraction/refining is slow.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 8, 2022
Tesla has signed numerous long-term agreements to secure its supply of lithium, nickel and other key raw materials.
Indeed, demand for both metals is expected to rise further from recent highs as global economies and businesses increasingly aim for electric.
Price movement
On Tuesday, Tesla stock price closed 1.6% higher at $800.