CEZ gives European Metals funding, may partner on lithium project
PRAGUE - Czech utility CEZ will provide a two-million euro convertible loan to European Metals Holding (EMH), the companies said on Tuesday, giving CEZ a potential majority stake in the company developing a large lithium deposit in the country.
The loan will mature on December 31, 2019 and carries a 7.5% interest rate. CEZ can convert the loan principal to shares at any time up to the maturity.
European Metals (EMH) controls the exploration licences to the Cinovec lithium/tin project in the Czech Republic, which it says is the largest lithium deposit in Europe.
Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis backed the deal for CEZ, in which the State holds a 70% share, saying it allowed the country to keep control of an important material without disrupting foreign investment.
European Metals shares soared 11% in London while CEZ was 0.4% up in Prague.
"Potentially partnering with CEZ further demonstrates EMH’s commitment to develop fully the Cinovec Project in conjunction with Czech industry, for the benefit of the country’s involvement in the battery and EV industries," EMH Managing Director Keith Coughlan said in a statement.
Demand for lithium, an important component in batteries, is set to grow as the electric car market in Europe gains momentum.
The move is a new route for CEZ in the electric vehicle market as it is already planning to roll out power charging stations throughout the country.
"One of CEZ's strategic priorities is new energy. One of the phenomena of the future will be battery systems," CEZ CEO Daniel Benes told a news conference.
CEZ will have until the end of the year to decide to take a stake in EMH.
Comments
The
content
you are trying to access is only available to subscribers.
If you are already a subscriber, you can Login Here.
If you are not a subscriber, you can subscribe now, by selecting one of the below options.
For more information or assistance, please contact us at subscriptions@creamermedia.co.za.
Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):
Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):
All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors
including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.
Already a subscriber?
Forgotten your password?
Receive weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine (print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
➕
Recieve daily email newsletters
➕
Access to full search results
➕
Access archive of magazine back copies
➕
Access to Projects in Progress
➕
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA
R4500 (equivalent of R375 a month)
SUBSCRIBEAll benefits from Option 1
➕
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports on various industrial and mining sectors, in PDF format, including on:
Electricity
➕
Water
➕
Energy Transition
➕
Hydrogen
➕
Roads, Rail and Ports
➕
Coal
➕
Gold
➕
Platinum
➕
Battery Metals
➕
etc.
Receive all benefits from Option 1 or Option 2 delivered to numerous people at your company
➕
Multiple User names and Passwords for simultaneous log-ins
➕
Intranet integration access to all in your organisation