Lithium from Chile
Lithium from Chile, Argentina and Bolivia makes up 20% of the current supply, with China and Australia the majority of the rest. Intense exploration and extraction is in full swing.
batteries
China Battery Gigafactories driven by EV Demand
EV production in China is booming with multiple “Gigafactories”, and the battery market is racing to keep up with demand and supply. China will get to 20% of EV new car sales by the end of 2021 4 years ahead of 2025. Six battery companies provide 47% of the global demand for batteres.
Lithium Shortfall for GigaFactories
It takes 2 years to build a battery gigafactory. But it takes 7 or more years to develop a mine. While there is plenty of lithium on the planet, it isn’t being extracted and refined quickly enough to keep up with the rapidly growing demand for batteries.
Battery Gigafactories
Over 200 Gigafactories have been constructed or in construction or announced. There are in many countries around the world and are needed to produce the 80 million cars each year and the GW of energy Grid Storage.
Lithium Battery Improvements
While lithium ion batteries are the mostly widely used, other battery technologies are avalable that are competitive in some applications. Numerous other battery chemistries are in R&D phase
Graphite for Batteries
Graphite is a key component in batteries and is the anode in most commercial batteries today. Sourced from fossil fuels, companies are seeking new carbon zero supply and looking to improve performance and reduce costs.
Lithium for Batteries
Lithium for batteries is in short supply and getting worse as batteries demand will increase by 30 times over the next decade. Mining supply is costly and slow. What other elements are in short supply.