Business 3 min read By Arthur Ellington
Son of Alamo Rent a Car founder builds lithium venture EnergyX in Texas
Teague Egan, son of the former owner of Alamo Rent a Car, has built EnergyX into a lithium extraction company with a $2 billion offtake deal and plans for commercial-scale US production.
Teague Egan, the son of the founder of Alamo Rent a Car, has built EnergyX into one of the more closely watched lithium extraction companies in the United States, backed by a $2 billion, ten-year supply agreement with the commodities trader Trafigura. The deal, signed in October for 100,000 tons of lithium, is described as the largest direct lithium extraction offtake in history. Egan, who has previously run a record label and invested early in Tesla, now leads a company that aims to bring commercial-scale lithium mining to East Texas.
EnergyX uses direct lithium extraction, or DLE, rather than the evaporation ponds traditionally used to produce the metal. The company is developing Project Lonestar, a commercial-scale operation in East Texas that is currently a demonstration plant. A planned 15,000-ton facility at the site is targeted for 2029, with construction expected to begin next year. The company is also pursuing projects in Chile, where a demonstration plant produces about 170 metric tons per year. Its Black Giant project in Chile has a first phase targeted for 2028 and an expansion targeted for 2030.
The company's financing picture includes a pending $690 million loan from the US Export-Import Bank, which has not yet been finalised. Eni has invested $225 million in EnergyX. The company has opened a headquarters in Austin and expanded its acreage in the Smackover formation, an area seen as a major potential source of lithium in the United States. Standard Lithium plans to begin DLE construction in the Smackover earlier than EnergyX, and Exxon and Chevron have also acquired acreage there.
The push comes as global lithium demand has risen by more than 400 percent this decade, driven largely by the battery market. Lithium is a central input for electric vehicles and energy storage, and supply has been a persistent concern for governments and manufacturers seeking to reduce reliance on overseas producers.
Egan's family history is closely linked to the venture. His father, Michael Egan, built Alamo Rent a Car and sold it in 1996. Michael Egan now sits on the EnergyX board. Teague Egan's earlier career included running a record label that signed the rapper Sammy Adams. He invested early in Tesla, and he has said that proceeds from that investment helped fund EnergyX.
Egan has set a long-term goal for the company of 500,000 to one million tons of lithium per year by 2040. He has also said he still aims for the presidency, a remark that adds a political dimension to a business whose success will depend on financing, permitting and the execution of its large-scale projects.
Source: fortune.com
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