FTEL:CC - China Mineral Export Restrictions Could Restrict Future Tellurium Supply

(TheNewswire)

China produces about 60% of theworld’s tellurium, essential for U.S. production ofcadmium-tellurium solar cells.

Vancouver, BC, Canada – TheNewswire - July 12, 2023 –First Tellurium Corp. (CSE: FTEL ) , ( OTC: FSTTF ) (the “Company” or “First Tellurium”), reports that ongoing trade tensions between China and theU.S. create implications for both tellurium and the production ofcadmium-tellurium solar cells. China announced last week that it willrestrict exports of the critical metals gallium and germanium, bothessential for the production of semiconductors. China produces around80% of the world’s gallium and approximately 60% of the world’sgermanium.

China also produces about 60% of the world’stellurium, most of which goes into cadmium-tellurium solar cells. Beijing has warned that it may ban the export oftechnology used to make solar panels, an industry which Chinadominates by controlling at least 75% of its global supply chain. Thathas potentially dire repercussions for the West’s drive for solarenergy deployment.

As the trade war heats up, the U.S. is looking tosecure safe, domestic sources of tellurium and many other criticalmetals to pre-empt potential shortages.

“This is precisely why the U.S. Department of Energy(DOE) launched its Cadmium TellurideAccelerator Consortium (CTAC) a yearago,” said First Tellurium President and CEO Tyrone Docherty.“They know the U.S. is vulnerable and has to establish safe andreliable sources of tellurium.”

The CTAC is a $20-million initiative designed to makecadmium tellurium (CdTe) solar cells less expensive and more efficientwhile developing new markets for solar cell products. CdTe solarcells, first developed in the United States, represent the second-mostcommon photovoltaic technology in the world after silicon.

According to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory,CdTe is one of the best performing thin-film technologies inlarge-scale commercial production. The technology can be produced morecheaply than silicon solar panels and has been shown to have a 22.1%efficiency in converting sunlight into electricity However, withoutstrengthened domestic manufacturing capacity, the US will continue torely on solar technology imports, exposing the nation to supply chainvulnerabilities while simultaneously losing out on job opportunities.

Metals analyst Chen Lin noted in a recent interviewthat, “First Solar, as the United States’ largest solar panelproducer, is directly in competition with Chinese solar producers.First Solar buys more tellurium than any user in the world.”

If China were to restrict tellurium exports, Chennoted, “That would strike at the heart of the U.S. solar panelindustry and greatly benefit Chinese producers.”

This supply vulnerability is why First Solar, back inthe mid-2000s, set up a worldwide search for tellurium deposits theycould acquire and mine themselves. “ In NorthAmerica alone,” said Docherty, “our understanding is that FirstSolar looked at over a hundred tellurium properties. Their number oneproperty by far, which they acquired, was the ColoradoKlondike which we now control. In fact, we acquired the property from FirstSolar’s head of exploration at the time, who had purchased it fromFirst Solar to start his own business.”

In addition to its extensive use in solar panels,tellurium demand is growing for thermoelectric devices (convertingheat to electricity). Additional future demand may come from next-generationlithium-tellurium batteries underdevelopment by First Tellurium partner Fenix Advanced Materials ,working in collaboration with the University of British Columbia. Thenew batteries have demonstrated improved performance compared tolithium-sulphur and lithium-selenium batteries. Research on thebatteries was published in the Journal of Colloid and Interface Science , and it has been supported by the Mitacs Accelerate Program, Natural Sciences and Engineering ResearchCouncil of Canada, Canada Foundation for Innovation, BC KnowledgeDevelopment Fund and Fenix Advanced Materials.

Dr. Jian Liu, Principal's Research Chair in EnergyStorage Technologies at UBC’s School of Engineering stated:“All-solid-state, lithium-tellurium batteries enable higher energyoutput with an improved safety rating inside a smaller form-factor,thereby expanding its possible applications. The high purity oftellurium, along with the mineral’s overall attributes, makes itideal as a rechargeable battery material”

Noted Docherty, “We’re the only junior miningcompany in the world focused on tellurium exploration. With ourKlondike high-grade tellurium property in Colorado, and the Deer Hornproperty in British Columbia with its mix of high-grade gold, silverand tellurium, we’re ahead of the curve in establishing strategic,domestic supplies for solar panel manufacturers like FirstSolar.”

About First Tellurium Corp.

First Tellurium’s unique business model is togenerate revenue and value through mineral discovery, projectdevelopment, project generation and cooperative access to untappedmineral regions in Indigenous territory with sustainableexploration.

Our Klondike tellurium-gold property in Colorado andpolymetallic Deer HornProject in British Columbia anchor adiversified search for metals, working in alliance with Indigenouspeoples, NGOs, governments and leading metals buyers. This is thefuture of mineral exploration—generating revenue by exploringresponsibly and leveraging diverse partnerships.

First Tellurium proudly adheres to, and supports, theprinciples and rights set out in the United Nations Declaration on theRights of Indigenous Peoples and in particular the fundamentalproposition of free, prior and informed consent. First Tellurium islisted on the Canadian Stock Exchange under the symbol “FTEL” andon the OTC under the symbol “FSTTF”. Further information aboutFTEL and its projects can be found on www.firsttellurium.com .

Neither theCanadian Securities Exchange nor its regulations services acceptresponsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-lookinginformation

All statements included in thispress release that address activities, events or developments that theCompany expects, believes or anticipates will or may occur in thefuture are forward-looking statements.  These forward-lookingstatements involve numerous assumptions made by the Company based onits experience, perception of historical trends, current conditions,expected future developments and other factors it believes areappropriate in the circumstances. In addition, these statementsinvolve substantial known and unknown risks and uncertainties thatcontribute to the possibility that the predictions, forecasts,projections and other forward-looking statements will proveinaccurate, certain of which are beyond the Company’s control. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-lookingstatements.  Except as required by law, the Company does not intendto revise or update these forward-looking statements after the datehereof or revise them to reflect the occurrence of futureunanticipated event.

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