Australia Tries to Break Its Dependence on China for Lithium Mining

Deep in rural Western Australia, Pilbara Minerals’ vast processing plant looms above the red dirt, quivering as tons of a lithium ore slurry move through its pipes.

The plant turns the ore from a nearby quarry into spodumene, a greenish crystalline powder that is about 6 percent lithium and sells for

. From there, the spodumene is shipped to China, where it is further refined so it can be used in the batteries that power…