As Albemarle brings new lithium capacity online, it will seek to give itself more exposure to rapidly rising spot prices - a consequence of still unrealised demand from the electric vehicle sector, Kallanish notes.

Albemarle is effectively sold out of lithium, according to ceo Kent Masters. Work is underway to bring several new projects online, but that will take time, he says. In the interim, the company is working on new pricing schemes to capture the projected rapid price increases in the market. 

“We kind of intentionally delayed the conversion from kind of a strict long-term fixed price contract,” says ceo Kent Masters. “So one that is more indicative of the market, that moves more with the market, and that we'd have different types of customers we contract in slightly different ways.”

Long-term contracts will likely fall by the wayside as the company broadens its customer base, he says. 

“So the portfolio of customers...who really want security of supply will be more of a fixed price, but it will still move with the markets and then contracts with other people [will] look more like market prices, not spot prices contracted, but prices that move with the market...And we did delay the implementation intentionally because we felt like we didn't want to negotiate at the bottom of the market,” he says.

The London Metal Exchange currently puts lithium at $13/kilogram - up at least 80% for some grades from the beginning of the year.