The Electric: Biden Administration Favors Making More Nations Eligible for U.S. Battery Subsidies

The landmark climate bill signed into law in August offered tens of billions of dollars in subsidies for electric vehicles whose batteries contain materials from the U.S. or countries with which the U.S. has a free trade agreement. That excluded many of the most ore-rich countries of the world, and the Biden administration has been seeking a way to make some of them eligible for the subsidies.

High on the administration’s list: gaining access to more lithium, nickel and cobalt. Officials are considering making materials from Argentina, Indonesia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo eligible for the subsidies, according to people with knowledge of the situation.