Patrick Howarth, Exxon Mobil's global lithium business manager, said that despite the continuous depression of lithium prices, he is still bullish on the growth of market demand.

Howarth attended an industry event held in Las Vegas and said in an interview with the media during the break, "The lithium market sentiment we see now is pessimistic, but behind it is the continued growth in demand for electric vehicles and the lithium-ion batteries they use."

"We know that the world urgently needs much more lithium than is currently produced," he added.

As one of the largest energy giants in the world, ExxonMobil officially announced its entry into the lithium business in November last year. The company has begun mining lithium in Arkansas, USA, with the goal of producing the first batch of battery-grade lithium in 2027 and achieving production to meet the needs of one million electric vehicles per year by 2030.

Due to the oversupply and slowing demand, lithium prices fell more than 80% last year. Although there was a brief rebound this year, lithium prices have weakened further this month.

Howarth said that ExxonMobil is committed to advancing the lithium project as quickly as possible. He pointed out that although more electric vehicles are needed in the process of global transition to clean energy, internal combustion engine vehicles will still be needed in many years to come. Therefore, ExxonMobil's lithium business can coexist with its oil business.

ExxonMobil announced on Tuesday that it has signed a preliminary agreement with SK On, a battery subsidiary of South Korean SK Group, to supply it with lithium through the Arkansas lithium project.

Howarth revealed that ExxonMobil is actively discussing lithium supply transactions with many potential customers.

"In our interactions with customers, we see a very consistent theme, which is that they value the value ExxonMobil brings to the lithium field, which is a safe haven in a very volatile and unstable market."