A new lithium war is about to begin

Canada could become a key source of lithium—which is good news for North American industry that may be losing access to Chinese lithium batteries.

One Door Closes, Another Opens

A trade war has broken out between China and the United States. While that's bad news for some industries that rely on Chinese imports, its good news for North American lithium miners like Power Metals and Nemaska.

In early April, the U.S. government slapped a big tariff on imported Chinese lithium batteries, part of a tariff on Chinese goods worth $50 billion.

That means that lithium miners will see a bigger market for their products—and a surge of investment into North American mining, which has the lowest risk factor in the world.

China may be cornering the market on South American lithium in order to feed its battery factories and churn out electric cars, but protectionist policies by the U.S. and aggressive expansion into European lithium production may cut the Chinese out of the global battery market.

Booming demand for lithium could be fed by the lithium mines of Canada—turning junior miners into major players virtually overnight.

Power Metals has announced a 15000m drilling program for 2018. "The explorational upside is immense," according to Dr. Julie Selway, the company's hard-rock lithium expert, "and each drill target can substantially increase the overall resource size."

Canadian lithium deposit, according to Selway, represent a "sleeping giant:" once tapped, it could provide enough lithium to satisfy North American demand.

Just as the world of oil has seen intense competition between OPEC and U.S. shale, the lithium world may be defined by its own war: China vs. Everyone Else.

In this new gold rush, it pays to be prepared for anything.

Other companies transforming the lithium the space: