Lithium Americas (NYSE: LAC) put a number on the year: $1.30–1.60 billion in 2026 capital expenditure for Thacker Pass phase 1, the largest single-year construction commitment from any US-domiciled lithium name. Phase 1 engineering is reported as 93% complete.
The milestone schedule LAC disclosed runs the year:
- Q2 2026: high-voltage power line commissioning
- First half 2026: delivery of major long-lead equipment
- Q3 2026: main concrete work complete
- Q4 2026: early commissioning of individual plants
- Late 2027: mechanical completion of phase 1 processing plant
- 2028: production ramp-up
Over 1,000 workers are reportedly on site, with peak construction expected to reach roughly 1,800. Bechtel remains the EPCM partner.
For LAC shareholders and the broader US-supply-chain trade: the 2027 mechanical-completion target is now the most-watched timeline in the space. Slip the Q2 power-line commissioning or the long-lead equipment deliveries and the late-2027 target is at risk, and the LAC re-rating thesis depends on hitting it. Hit the milestones cleanly through Q3 and the chart probably writes itself. The first half of 2026 is the read.