SYDNEY, July 25 (Xinhua) -- With Australia's lithium industry in the midst of boom, mining operator Talison Lithium has announced a plan to double the production of its Greenbushes facility.
Located in Western Australia (WA), around 250 km southeast of the state's capital Perth, the site is owned by China's Tianqi Lithium and its U.S. partner Albemarle.
Both parties on Wednesday announced the approval of the 516-million-Australian-dollar (382 million U.S. dollars) expansion plan, which is expected to boost production at the mine to around 1.95 million tons per year.
"Greenbushes is a truly world-class mining operation with the capacity for significant expansion to underpin the lithium supply needs of our shareholders," Talison chief executive Lorry Mignacca said in a statement.
"In addition to the major investment by Talison in Greenbushes, the expanded lithium concentrate production at Greenbushes will underpin the development of world-class lithium hydroxide production plants in Western Australia driven by Tianqi and Albemarle -- underpinning a new value-adding and jobs-creating industry in this state."
A major factor driving the huge demand for Australian lithium at the moment is China's move to invest heavily in electric cars.
As these vehicles run on lithium powered batteries, the industry is in prime position to capitalize on the huge potential for growth.
While the development plan still needs to win the approval of WA's state government, it's expected that the expansion will begin early in 2019.