Due to the decline in electric car sales, Ford (F.US) has postponed the purchase of lithium metal from Australian mining company Liontown.

Due to the decline in sales of electric cars, Ford (F.US) will postpone purchasing lithium metal from Australian producer Liontown Resources, which is a key component of electric car batteries. The mining company disclosed in a stock exchange filing that the car manufacturer will not be able to obtain any lithium resources from Liontown's Kathleen Valley project in 2027 and 2028. The amount of goods to be delivered to Ford in the future will also be halved to 256,250 tons. In exchange, Liontown will delay payment of its $300 million loan repayment due to Ford by one year. The mining company stated: "This amendment to the procurement agreement enables Liontown to further release more ore into the market, including the ability to sell additional quantities of ore to the spot market to promote transparent pricing, or seek new strategic partnerships." In addition, there are reports that Ford has changed its original plan, which was initially to allow dealers to provide a $7500 tax credit for leasing electric cars after the subsidy expires on September 30. A spokesperson stated, "Ford will not apply for electric vehicle tax credits, but will maintain competitive leasing costs that we currently offer in the market." General Motors Company (GM.US) also announced a similar move on Wednesday.