Fastmarkets Texas Lithium Market Briefing

Brings together lithium producers, project developers, processors, battery manufacturers, investors, technology providers and end users to assess the global lithium and battery materials market, test investment and supply assumptions, and examine shifting demand across EV and energy storage markets. Topics include which lithium projects may advance, financing the next wave of supply, battery manufacturers’ and energy-storage buyers’ sourcing needs, and how new end markets could reshape global demand.

A Washington briefing on US critical minerals strategy, combining policy priorities for 2027 with Fastmarkets’ market outlook. Topics include strengthening domestic mining, processing and refining capacity; supply-chain gaps and overseas processing dependence; the effects of industrial policy, government support and market conditions on investment and commercial development; and the influence of defense and aerospace demand on sourcing, procurement and security of supply. The program also addresses trade relationships, geopolitical risk, international competition, prices, supply and demand, project economics, and the implications of policy and market developments for investment and procurement. Competitor attendance is subject to approval.

An intensive workshop on projected electricity demand and expanding the supply of natural resources used to generate power. Topics include natural gas, geothermal development and repurposing oil and gas assets; hydrogen, uranium, lithium and critical minerals; and water, environmental, storage, site-selection and regulatory considerations. Program discussions cover grid shortfalls and raw materials for electricity generation, solutions for increasing electricity supply, geothermal, and technology including ORC, sensors and small nuclear reactors. Other sessions address AI prompts for grid and behind-the-meter planning; lithium direct lithium extraction (DLE) and hydrogen technologies; regulatory and legislative factors affecting geothermal, critical minerals, low-carbon energy, grids and data centers; and mining and oil-and-gas intersections, including near-surface imaging and copper for electricity transmission. The program also includes an AI prompt clinic focused on water, the environment, science and regulations.

The program examines Texas power policy, market design, infrastructure development, project investment, and operations. Shared plenary sessions address the 90th Legislative Session and SB 6, PUCT rulemaking, ERCOT’s Batch Zero large-load interconnection process, load growth, data-center power supply, 765-kV transmission, siting and permitting, and local engagement. Headline speakers include State Representative Todd Hunter of the Texas House of Representatives (District 32) and Commissioner Courtney Hjaltman of the Public Utility Commission of Texas. Day Two has concurrent ERCOT Market Reforms and Investment & Asset Optimization tracks. Topics include resource adequacy, transmission cost allocation beyond 4CP, data-center development, battery state-of-charge rules, cybersecurity and energy security, renewable project strategy, dispatchable generation, electricity affordability, demand response, distributed energy resources and ADER, and inverter-based resource ride-through requirements. Other sessions examine battery project economics, powered-land siting factors such as water and cooling, and strategies for optimizing assets in changing market conditions. The closing plenaries cover advanced nuclear, geothermal and other low-emission dispatchable generation; project finance amid tax-credit, FEOC/PFE, procurement, interest-rate, EPC-cost and tariff risks; and energy-asset M&A and deal trends.

Sessions address oilfield insurance, the federal outlook for upstream oil and gas, the 90th Texas Legislative Session, legal issues relating to “0000b/c,” and a skeptical view of the energy transition. A state and federal affairs panel covers the 2026 election results. The program also includes a keynote address from John Calce, Chairman, Founder, and CEO of America First Refining.

The program examines North American advanced battery markets and technologies across grid-connected storage, electric vehicles, heavy-duty transportation, data centers, robotics, defense, and aerospace. Market briefings address light- and heavy-duty EVs, data centers and the grid, robotics, aerospace and defense applications, energy materials, and battery recycling and second-life markets. Plenary sessions cover data-center energy storage, foreign battery manufacturers in the U.S., and EV manufacturers navigating battery supply-chain gaps. Impact Sessions address non-lithium and emerging chemistries; defense batteries and domestic supply-chain security; truck, rail, and transit electrification; battery materials and the missing pCAM/CAM/AAM midstream; battery-technology financing; U.S. battery-materials mining; robotics and aerospace; domestic battery-manufacturing equipment supply chains; next-generation batteries; Chinese battery and technology supply relationships; and digitalization and AI in battery manufacturing. Other program elements include Community Action Labs, member company and research-institution presentations, and a closing roundtable on the future of battery technology. Featured program speakers include Bob Galyen, NAATBatt International’s Chief Technology Officer; M. Stanley Whittingham, NAATBatt’s Chief Science Officer and Nobel laureate; and David Hochschild, Chair of the California Energy Commission.

Brings together storage developers, tax equity investors, capital and debt providers, tax advisors, market analysts, and offtakers. Topics include contract negotiations, revenue streams and costs; tax equity and credit markets; FEOC and Material Assistance; augmentation; M&A and merchant transactions; procurement plans, supply-chain risk, and domestic equipment availability; opportunities across ISO, RTO, and bilateral markets; extracting value from projects and portfolios; and adapting storage finance to political risk and new market signals.

The forum examines North American power markets across renewables, conventional generation, utilities, data centers, commercial and industrial offtakers, and government. Topics include energy-policy consistency and consequential legislation; the effects of tariffs, tax-credit regulation, geopolitical conflict, interest rates, and industry consolidation on costs and demand; FERC interconnection reform and transmission investment; and whether domestic solar and storage manufacturing can compete under changing trade and incentive rules. The program also addresses data-center and AI-driven load growth, local opposition and project approvals, equipment and workforce constraints, powered land, gas paired with battery storage, battery operations and project economics, and mergers and acquisitions in power development. Other sessions examine hyperscaler nuclear strategies, clean firm and dispatchable power, long-duration storage, geothermal, small modular reactors, gas with CCS, aging renewable assets, behind-the-meter storage, large-load flexibility, and utility–data center collaboration. Roundtable topics include understanding FEOC and tariffs, overcoming local opposition, operations and maintenance, flexibility programs, EPC partnerships, and behind-the-meter projects.

NAPE Summit combines an energy prospect and property expo with a business conference and expo hubs covering oil and gas, critical minerals, renewable energy, offshore activity, minerals and non-operating interests, data centers, and bitcoin mining. The Critical Minerals Hub addresses exploration, extraction, processing, and regulatory, market, and supply-chain factors; other hubs cover energy and digital infrastructure, data-center power demands, and offshore regulation, technology, and leasing. The Energy Business Conference has business and technical tracks. Its agenda covers U.S. and global energy-market outlooks; grid capacity and AI-driven electricity demand; AI adoption, scaling, and governance in energy; and how conflict, trade disputes, cyber threats, supply-chain disruptions, strategic minerals, and energy security affect markets and investment. Technical sessions address AI in subsurface workflows—including geospatial tools, OSDU and harmonized datasets, and seismic analysis—and emerging opportunities in mature basins, including direct lithium extraction from Arkansas’s Smackover Formation, geothermal co-production in the Bakken, helium and hydrogen resources, and horizontal development. The expo also features prospect presentations and a government affairs session.