Lithium-ion batteries are key components for most consumer electronics and electric vehicles. Lithium-ion batteries are key components for most consumer electronics and electric vehicles. 

Lithium-ion batteries are key components for most consumer electronics and electric vehicles. Lithium-ion batteries are key components for most consumer electronics and electric vehicles. 

Workers are busy on a product at a Polarium energy-storage facility, where they make energy storage and optimization solutions, built on lithium-ion battery technology for businesses within telecom, commercial and industrial facilities across the world, in Cape Town, South Africa, April 5, 2023. REUTERS/Esa Alexander 

Workers interact at a Polarium energy-storage facility, where they make energy storage and optimization solutions, built on lithium-ion battery technology for businesses within telecom, commercial and industrial facilities across the world, in Cape Town, South Africa, April 5, 2023. REUTERS/Esa Alexander 

Workers are busy on a product at a Polarium energy-storage facility, where they make energy storage and optimization solutions, built on lithium-ion battery technology for businesses within telecom, commercial and industrial facilities across the world, in Cape Town, South Africa, April 5, 2023. REUTERS/Esa Alexander 

Workers are busy at a Polarium energy-storage facility, where they make energy storage and optimization solutions, built on lithium-ion battery technology for businesses within telecom, commercial and industrial facilities across the world, in Cape Town, South Africa, April 5, 2023. REUTERS/Esa Alexander 

A worker is busy on a product at a Polarium energy-storage facility, where they make energy storage and optimization solutions, built on lithium-ion battery technology for businesses within telecom, commercial and industrial facilities across the world, in Cape Town, South Africa, April 5, 2023. REUTERS/Esa Alexander 

A worker is busy on a product at a Polarium energy storage facility, where they make energy storage and optimization solutions, built on lithium-ion battery technology for businesses within telecom, commercial and industrial facilities across the world, in Cape Town, South Africa April 5, 2023. REUTERS/Esa Alexander 

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, with Li-Cycle President and CEO Ajay Kochnar and Executive Chairman Tim Johnston, tour the lithium-ion battery recycling firm Li-Cycle, in Kingston, Ontario, Canada March 7, 2023. REUTERS/Lars Hagberg 

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, with Li-Cycle President and CEO Ajay Kochnar, tour the lithium-ion battery recycling firm Li-Cycle, in Kingston, Ontario, Canada March 7, 2023. REUTERS/Lars Hagberg 

Workers sort batteries at the lithium-ion battery recycling firm Li-Cycle, in Kingston, Ontario, Canada March 7, 2023. REUTERS/Lars Hagberg 

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, with Li-Cycle Executive Chairman Tim Johnston, tour the lithium-ion battery recycling firm Li-Cycle, in Kingston, Ontario, Canada March 7, 2023. REUTERS/Lars Hagberg 

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, with Li-Cycle President and CEO Ajay Kochnar and Executive Chairman Tim Johnston, tour the lithium-ion battery recycling firm Li-Cycle, in Kingston, Ontario, Canada March 7, 2023. REUTERS/Lars Hagberg 

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, with Li-Cycle Executive Chairman Tim Johnston, tour the lithium-ion battery recycling firm Li-Cycle, in Kingston, Ontario, Canada March 7, 2023. REUTERS/Lars Hagberg 

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen tour the lithium-ion battery recycling firm Li-Cycle, in Kingston, Ontario, Canada March 7, 2023. REUTERS/Lars Hagberg 

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, with Li-Cycle President and CEO Ajay Kochnar and Executive Chairman Tim Johnston, tour the lithium-ion battery recycling firm Li-Cycle, in Kingston, Ontario, Canada March 7, 2023. REUTERS/Lars Hagberg 

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, with Li-Cycle President and CEO Ajay Kochnar and Executive Chairman Tim Johnston, tour the lithium-ion battery recycling firm Li-Cycle, in Kingston, Ontario, Canada March 7, 2023. REUTERS/Lars Hagberg 

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, with Li-Cycle President and CEO Ajay Kochnar and Executive Chairman Tim Johnston, tour the lithium-ion battery recycling firm Li-Cycle, in Kingston, Ontario, Canada March 7, 2023. REUTERS/Lars Hagberg 

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen tour the lithium-ion battery recycling firm Li-Cycle, in Kingston, Ontario, Canada March 7, 2023. REUTERS/Lars Hagberg 

A man takes a photo of a display made up of Panasonic lithium ion batteries during CES 2023, an annual consumer electronics trade show, in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. January 5, 2023. REUTERS/Steve Marcus 

Lithium-ion cells from old laptop battery packs are pictured at the Quadloop recycling facility in Lagos, Nigeria October 4, 2022. REUTERS/Temilade Adelaja 

Employees remove lithium-ion cells from old laptop battery packs at the Quadloop recycling facility in Lagos, Nigeria October 4, 2022. REUTERS/Temilade Adelaja 

An employee holds a handful of lithium-ion cells from old laptop battery packs at the Quadloop recycling facility in Lagos, Nigeria October 4, 2022. REUTERS/Temilade Adelaja 

Lithium-ion cells from old laptop battery packs are pictured being tested and charged in the industrial charging station, at the Quadloop recycling facility in Lagos, Nigeria October 4, 2022. REUTERS/Temilade Adelaja 

An employee removes lithium-ion cells from old laptop battery packs at the Quadloop recycling facility in Lagos, Nigeria October 4, 2022. REUTERS/Temilade Adelaja 

An employee inserts lithium-ion cells from old laptop battery packs into a solar lantern at the Quadloop recycling facility in Lagos, Nigeria October 4, 2022. REUTERS/Temilade Adelaja 

A pile of lithium-ion cells from old laptop battery packs are pictured at the Quadloop recycling facility in Lagos, Nigeria October 4, 2022. REUTERS/Temilade Adelaja 

Lithium ion batteries are pictured at a production line at a newly inaugurated Quantum Batteries factory, in Cochabamba, Bolivia July 8, 2022. REUTERS/Patricia Pinto 

Lithium ion batteries are pictured at a production line at a newly inaugurated Quantum Batteries factory, in Cochabamba, Bolivia July 8, 2022. REUTERS/Patricia Pinto 

Lithium ion batteries are pictured on a production line at a newly inaugurated Quantum Batteries factory, in Cochabamba, Bolivia July 8, 2022. REUTERS/Patricia Pinto 

Employees test lithium ion batteries at a newly inaugurated Quantum Batteries factory, in Cochabamba, Bolivia July 8, 2022. REUTERS/Patricia Pinto 

Employees test lithium ion batteries at a newly inaugurated Quantum Batteries factory, in Cochabamba, Bolivia July 8, 2022. REUTERS/Patricia Pinto 

Lithium ion batteries are pictured on a production line at a newly inaugurated Quantum Batteries factory, in Cochabamba, Bolivia July 8, 2022. REUTERS/Patricia Pinto 

Lithium ion batteries are pictured on a production line at a newly inaugurated Quantum Batteries factory, in Cochabamba, Bolivia July 8, 2022. REUTERS/Patricia Pinto 

An employee works at a production line of lithium ion batteries at a newly inaugurated Quantum Batteries factory, in Cochabamba, Bolivia July 8, 2022. REUTERS/Patricia Pinto 

An employee touches lithium ion batteries at a newly inaugurated Quantum Batteries factory, in Cochabamba, Bolivia July 8, 2022. REUTERS/Patricia Pinto 

An employee works at a production line of lithium ion batteries at a newly inaugurated Quantum Batteries factory, in Cochabamba, Bolivia July 8, 2022. REUTERS/Patricia Pinto 

A zero-emission electric-powered tanker Asahi, equipped with lithium-ion battery and operated by Asahi Tanker, is seen moored at the port in Kawasaki, near Tokyo, Japan April 14, 2022. REUTERS/Yuka Obayashi 

Employees charge lithium ion batteries for a Hamba electric motorcycle at a solar-powered recharging station in Wedza, Zimbabwe, 22 May 2020. Picture taken May 22, 2020. REUTERS/MacDonald Dzirutwe 

Lithium-ion automotive batteries are seen at SVOLT Energy Technology, which was carved out of China's Great Wall Motor Co, in Changzhou, Jiangsu province, China November 27, 2019. REUTERS/Aly Song 

Lithium-ion automotive batteries are seen at SVOLT Energy Technology, which was carved out of China's Great Wall Motor Co, in Changzhou, Jiangsu province, China November 27, 2019. REUTERS/Aly Song 

The mock of lithium-ion battery is displayed during a news conference at Asahi Kasei Corporation's Tokyo headquarters in Tokyo, Japan October 9, 2019. Picture taken October 9, 2019. REUTERS/Issei Kato 

Asahi Kasei honorary fellow Akira Yoshino, 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry winner, holds a mock of lithium-ion battery and a flower bouquet during a news conference in Tokyo, Japan October 9, 2019. REUTERS/Issei Kato 

Asahi Kasei honorary fellow Akira Yoshino, 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry winner, holds a mock of lithium-ion battery and a flower bouquet during a news conference in Tokyo, Japan October 9, 2019. REUTERS/Issei Kato 

Asahi Kasei honorary fellow Akira Yoshino, 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry winner, holds a mock of lithium-ion battery during a news conference in Tokyo, Japan October 9, 2019. REUTERS/Issei Kato 

Asahi Kasei honorary fellow Akira Yoshino, 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry winner, holds a mock of lithium-ion battery during a news conference in Tokyo, Japan October 9, 2019. REUTERS/Issei Kato 

An auto-sealing machine processes a lithium ion battery for iPhone inside a factory in Dongguan, Guangdong province, China October 16, 2018. Picture taken October 16, 2018. REUTERS/Joyce Zhou 

An employee works at a production line of lithium ion batteries inside a factory in Dongguan, Guangdong province, China October 16, 2018. Picture taken October 16, 2018. REUTERS/Joyce Zhou 

An employee works at a production line of lithium ion batteries inside a factory in Dongguan, Guangdong province, China October 16, 2018. Picture taken October 16, 2018. REUTERS/Joyce Zhou 

Employees work at a production line of lithium ion batteries inside a factory in Dongguan, Guangdong province, China October 16, 2018. Picture taken October 16, 2018. REUTERS/Joyce Zhou 

Lithium ion batteries are seen on a production line inside a factory in Dongguan, Guangdong province, China October 16, 2018. Picture taken October 16, 2018. REUTERS/Joyce Zhou 

Employees work at a production line of lithium ion batteries inside a factory in Dongguan, Guangdong province, China October 16, 2018. Picture taken October 16, 2018. REUTERS/Joyce Zhou 

Employees work at a production line of lithium ion batteries inside a factory in Dongguan, Guangdong province, China October 16, 2018. Picture taken October 16, 2018. REUTERS/Joyce Zhou 

An employee works at a production line of lithium ion batteries inside a factory in Dongguan, Guangdong province, China October 16, 2018. Picture taken October 16, 2018. REUTERS/Joyce Zhou 

A woman looks at a lithium ion battery on a production line inside a factory in Dongguan, Guangdong province, China October 16, 2018. Picture taken October 16, 2018. REUTERS/Joyce Zhou 

An employee works at a production line of lithium ion batteries inside a factory in Dongguan, Guangdong province, China October 16, 2018. Picture taken October 16, 2018. REUTERS/Joyce Zhou 

Lithium ion batteries for iPhones come out from an auto-sealing machine inside a factory in Dongguan, Guangdong province, China October 16, 2018. Picture taken October 16, 2018. REUTERS/Joyce Zhou 

Earlier this year, the world's two biggest lithium producers publicly celebrated new deals with Chile's government that will allow them to vastly increase output of the ultralight battery metal from the Atacama, the world's driest desert. U.S.-based Albemarle Corp and Chile's SQM operate just 3 miles (5 km) apart in the remote Salar, a basin in the Atacama that is home to one of the world's richest deposits of high-grade lithium. Lithium-ion batteries are key components for most consumer electronics, from cellphones and laptops to electric cars. In celebrating the new contracts, the two companies said they were confident they could significantly boost output without drawing more than their current quotas of lithium-rich brine, or saltwater, that has for millennia accumulated in pools beneath the Atacama. REUTERS/Ivan Alvarado SEARCH "MINE LITHIUM" FOR THIS STORY. SEARCH "WIDER IMAGE" FOR ALL STORIES. TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY. Matching text: CHILE-LITHIUM/ 

A Sony lithium ion battery is seen at a store in Singapore April 19, 2018. REUTERS/Thomas White 

A Sony lithium ion battery is seen at a store in Singapore April 19, 2018. REUTERS/Thomas White