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China Pollution Crackdown May Hike EV Battery Prices
China supplies most of the graphite found in lithium-ion batteries used in electric cars, hybrids and consumer electronics.
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China supplies most of the graphite found in lithium-ion batteries used in electric cars, hybrids and consumer electronics. But the country has been closing dozens of graphite mines in a bid to ease pollution, Bloomberg News reports.
As a result, some analysts predict, graphite prices could jump 30% this year. They say the hike may lift the cost of batteries used in electric cars by 5%.
The graphite content in batteries ranges from about 50 kg (110 lbs) in an EV and 10 kg (22 lbs) in a hybrid to 15 grams (half an ounce) in a smartphone, according to Bloomberg.
The news service notes that no major new graphite mines have opened outside China in some 30 years. It says the impending shortage likely from China's new crackdown will prompt Australia to reopen its Uley graphite mine later this month. The facility had been idled two decades ago because China's expanding output depressed graphite prices.
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