by Roby Brock (roby@talkbusiness.net)

Standard Lithium Ltd. and Equinor announced Friday (Sept. 20) that its jointly-owned U.S. subsidiary, SWA Lithium LLC has been selected for up to $225 million from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

This selection is one of the largest ever awarded to a U.S. critical minerals project and is part of the second wave of funding under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) aimed at expanding domestic manufacturing of all segments of the battery supply chain and increasing production of critical minerals in the U.S.

None of Arkansas’ Congressional delegation voted in favor of the IIJA. The provisional grant is dependent on completing successful final negotiations with the DOE.

The $225 million funding by the DOE will support the construction of the Central Processing Facility for Phase 1 of the Southwest Arkansas project, which is being designed to annually produce 22,500 tonnes of battery-quality lithium carbonate.

U.S. Department of Energy awards $225 million to lithium efforts in Southwest Arkansas

While Northeast Arkansas has been hit hard in recent weeks with a rise in COVID-19 cases, the Texarkana area in the southwest corner of the state has some of the highest 14-day moving average positivity rates.

Miller County, the home of Texarkana, has the highest 14-day moving average rate of 23.3%, according to the Arkansas Department of Health (ADH). Rounding out the top five are Sevier County, just north of Miller, at 19.6%; Mississippi County at 19.5%; Lafayette County, just east of Miller County, at 17.2%; and Jackson County at 16.3%.

https://talkbusiness.net/2020/10/covid-19-positivity-rates-highest-in-southwest-and-northeast-corners-of-arkansas/

COVID-19 positivity rates highest in southwest and northeast corners of Arkansas - Talk Business & Politics
While Northeast Arkansas has been hit hard in recent weeks with a rise in COVID-19 cases, the Texarkana area in the southwest corner of the state has some of the highest 14-day moving average positivity rates. Miller County, the home of Texarkana, has the highest 14-day moving average rate of 23.3%, according to the Arkansas Department of Health (ADH).