Nemaska Lithium

What Nemaska Lithium does

Nemaska Lithium Inc. is a Canadian integrated lithium producer headquartered in Quebec that operates the Whabouchi hard-rock spodumene mine in the Eeyou Istchee James Bay region and is constructing a lithium hydroxide conversion plant in Bécancour. The company's core technology combines conventional spodumene mining at Whabouchi with hydrometallurgical processing at Bécancour to produce battery-grade lithium hydroxide; the downstream plant was 60% complete at end-2025, with commissioning scheduled for 2026 and first commercial production targeted for 2028 at an estimated 27,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) capacity. Nemaska sells spodumene concentrate and (once operational) battery-grade lithium hydroxide directly to electric-vehicle battery manufacturers and energy-storage system companies in North America under an enterprise B2B sales motion, with pricing likely negotiated through long-term supply agreements tied to prevailing lithium market prices.

Ownership is concentrated: Rio Tinto holds a 53.9% majority stake acquired initially via its March 2025 US$6.7 billion acquisition of Arcadium Lithium and increased to majority in February 2026, with the Government of Quebec retaining a 46.1% stake through Investissement Québec. Rio Tinto has committed over US$300 million in 2026 and assumed direct management, while Quebec has committed up to US$200 million in additional equity to fund construction and ramp-up. As of the available data the company is pre-revenue at the hydroxide level, employs 101–250 people, and is positioning itself as a vertically integrated North American lithium supply source for the EV and stationary storage value chains.

Name

Nemaska Lithium

Legal name

Nemaska Lithium Inc.

Website

https://nemaskaexploration.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Nemaska Lithium is a Canadian integrated lithium producer mining spodumene at its Whabouchi mine and building a Bécancour hydroxide conversion plant to supply battery-grade lithium to North American EV and energy-storage manufacturers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Lithium Mining and Processing

NAICS

Chemical Manufacturing (325)

SIC

Metal Mining (1000)

akta.pro primary industry

Lithium Mining & Brine Extraction (IMAKAFAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Battery-Grade Chemical Processing (LiOH/Li2CO3, Ni/Co Sulfates, Mn Sulfate) (IMAKAFAI)

Keywords

• Lithium mining
• Lithium hydroxide production
• Battery-grade lithium
• Spodumene concentrate
• EV battery materials

Headquarters

HQ city

Quebec

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Personnel, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Spodumene Concentrate Sales: Revenue generated from mining and selling spodumene concentrate produced at the Whabouchi mine in the Eeyou Istchee James Bay region of Québec. Spodumene is the primary raw material input for lithium hydroxide production.
2. Lithium Hydroxide Production and Sales: Revenue from producing and selling battery-grade lithium hydroxide at the Bécancour conversion facility. The plant was 60% complete as of end-2025, with commissioning scheduled for 2026 and first production targeted for 2028.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

Nemaska Lithium operates a vertically integrated lithium business in Quebec, Canada. It mines spodumene concentrate at the Whabouchi mine in the Eeyou Istchee James Bay region and converts it into battery-grade lithium hydroxide at the Bécancour chemical processing plant. The company's products supply the North American electric vehicle battery and energy storage supply chains.

Product overview

Nemaska Lithium operates a vertically integrated lithium supply chain consisting of two primary assets: the Whabouchi spodumene mine in the Eeyou Istchee James Bay region of Quebec (the upstream mining operation) and the Bécancour lithium hydroxide plant (the downstream chemical conversion facility). The company focuses on producing high-purity lithium compounds for battery applications, with the mine providing feedstock that is converted into battery-grade lithium hydroxide at the Bécancour facility. Rio Tinto holds a 53.9% majority stake while the Government of Québec retains 46.1% through Investissement Québec. First production from the integrated operation is expected in 2028.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Lithium Hydroxide (Bécancour Plant)
• Whabouchi Spodumene Mine

Quantifiable outcome

• First production from Bécancour plant targeted for 2028
• +1 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Pilbara Minerals: Australia's largest hard-rock spodumene concentrate producer with downstream ambitions; comparable upstream asset profile and a benchmark for hard-rock lithium project economics.
• SQM: Chilean-based global lithium chemicals major with brine-based LiOH/Li2CO3 production; competes with Nemaska in the lithium hydroxide merchant market and is a direct rival for North American offtake.
• Albemarle Corporation: World's largest dedicated lithium producer with diversified brine and hard-rock assets and integrated conversion; competes head-on with Nemaska for battery-grade LiOH offtake from global cell makers.
• Ganfeng Lithium: Chinese integrated lithium major with global hard-rock, brine, and chemical-conversion assets; competes with Nemaska in the lithium chemicals merchant market and for OEM supply agreements.
• Tianqi Lithium: Chinese integrated lithium major with hard-rock interests and large hydroxide conversion capacity; competes globally with Nemaska for OEM/cell-maker supply relationships.

Direct peers

• Sigma Lithium: Brazilian hard-rock spodumene concentrate producer with integrated chemical-conversion ambitions; same upstream-mining/downstream-processing business model and same battery-grade lithium end-market as Nemaska.
• Lithium Americas: North American lithium developer advancing hard-rock and brine projects through construction into production; shares Nemaska's project-development profile and focus on supplying North American battery supply chains.
• Frontier Lithium: Canadian hard-rock spodumene developer with integrated LiOH conversion plans in Ontario; overlaps Nemaska on geology, jurisdiction, integrated business model, and battery-grade end-market.
• Rock Tech Lithium: Canada- and Germany-focused hard-rock spodumene-to-LiOH converter building a North American/German lithium hydroxide footprint — directly overlapping Nemaska's mining-to-conversion model and geographic focus.

Emerging players

• Patriot Battery Metals: Canadian hard-rock lithium developer in Quebec with one of the largest spodumene resources globally; competes with Nemaska for downstream offtake and represents a future integrated competitor.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/nemaska_lithium
• Facebookfacebook.com/nemaskalithium

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds6 records

Investors2 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Nemaska Lithium