October 4, 2024: First Phosphate Corp has secured a lease for a 10,000 tonne per annum iron phosphate cathode active material pre-cursor plant in Quebec.

The Quebec provincial government said the move marked another step forward in plans to expand the region’s LFP battery production sector.

The plant, where initial production is expected to start in the first quarter of 2026, will be the first link in the LFP ‘Battery Valley’ in Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean, said Éric Larouche, chairman of the Board of Promotion Saguenay.

“Our goal is to facilitate the creation of this North American value chain. From the phosphate mine, to LFP cathode powder and, eventually, to the LFP battery itself,” he said.

The investment needed to start operations at First Saguenay is estimated at about US$65 million (CAD $90 million). 

First Phosphate said the lease deal is conditional on the company arranging the financing needed to carry out activities ahead of start-up and before April 30, 2025.

Proposals for the project include retrofitting First Saguenay into a large portion of an existing building at the site.

The site is 20km from the deep-sea port of Saguenay, where the company intends to organize the next phases of its industrial activities to make it ready to handle inbound and outbound shipments of materials.

First Saguenay will also be linked directly to the Canadian National Railway network.