Welcome to the Daily 5 report for Wednesday, Oct. 1.
On a day when the auto industry reported robust U.S. electric vehicle sales for September and the third quarter, General Motors announced it has a new joint venture partner in a strategic new lithium mining operation in Nevada: the U.S. government.
Of course, the consensus is that EV sales could be cresting now that U.S. tax credits have expired. And it's unclear if GM's investment in lithium mining will ever live up to expectations.
But one thing is clear: GM will have to deal with the U.S. Department of Energy along with partner Lithium Americas as this mining development proceeds.
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GM, which invested $625 million in the mine last year for a 38 percent stake, has the right to buy all of the project's lithium from its first phase and a portion from the second phase for 20 years, Reuters reported today.
"We're confident in the Thacker Pass project, which will reduce U.S. dependence on imported lithium and can support domestic manufacturing across many industries," Shilpan Amin, who oversees GM's supply chain procurement, said in a statement.
The first phase is expected to produce 40,000 metric tons of battery-quality lithium carbonate per year, enough for up to 800,000 EVs. Our Molly Boigon toured Thacker Pass last year and filed this report.
In other news, several automakers already have taken post-tax credit actions to keep their EV sales moving. Tesla and Hyundai made moves today.
Hyundai Motor Co. said it will reduce the sticker price of its Ioniq 5 compact crossover by as much as $9,800 across trims for the 2026 model year, while continuing to offer a $7,500 cash incentive on 2025 models through October, Carly Schaffner reported in this story. The automaker said the move reflects its push to make EVs more attainable and reinforces its long-term electrification strategy, she wrote.
Tesla, meanwhile, raised its lease prices on a couple of models, Reuters reported.
We will continue to update our third-quarter and September sales coverage as more results arrive. Click here for the live blog.
That's it for today. If you want to view this story in your browser, click here.
— Philip Nussel, online editor
