The Ioneer Ltd (ASX: INR) share price is in the green today on the back of the company's latest lithium battery agreement.
Its shares are currently swapping hands at 56 cents, a 3.7% gain. For perspective, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is up 0.86% today.
Let's take a look at what this lithium miner revealed today.
Nevada lithium agreement
The Ioneer share price is gaining after the lithium explorer revealed it had completed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with NexTech Batteries in the United States.
Ioneer owns the Rhyolite Ridge lithium-boron project in Nevada, USA. This is said by the company to be the only known lithium-boron deposit in North America. Ioneer hopes to produce more than 22,000 tonnes of lithium materials per year from this project. The deposit is about 225 miles (362km) northwest of Last Vegas.
NexTech batteries is a lithium-sulphur battery technology company based in Carson City, Nevada.
The companies have "expressed mutual interest" in using lithium carbonate and/or lithium hydroxide from the Ioneer project to supply NexTech's production facility.
Commenting on the MOU which may be pushing up the Ioneer share price today, managing director Bernard Rowe said:
As Ioneer focuses on producing the materials needed for sustainable and clean technologies, it's important for companies like NexTech to develop and produce those technologies domestically, and sustainably.
The US and Nevada have prioritised the need for a domestic battery supply chain, and with little current supply, development of Rhyolite Ridge will be crucial to meeting this important goal.
The Northern Nevada Development Authority helped facilitate the introduction between the two companies.
Ioneer share price snapshot
The Ioneer share price has surged 40% over the past year, but it is down nearly 31% year to date.
For perspective, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has gained nearly 10% in the past 12 months.
The lithium explorer's shares have climbed 2.8% in a month, while they have jumped 1.8% in a week.
Ioneer has a market capitalisation of about $1.16 billion based on its current share price.
