The rise of electric vehicles (EVs) has caused upheaval in the lithium ion battery industry. Before Elon Musk announced Tesla’s intention to build the world’s biggest lithium ion battery plant, The Gigafactory 1, lithium ion batteries were somewhat of a cottage industry geared to supplying a mobile consumer market for smartphones, laptops, and power-tools. As … Continue reading Who is winning the global lithium ion battery arms race?
Lithium and cobalt prices are experiencing a new period of volatility as prices crest from post-2010 highs. Both speciality minerals that are key components in an electric vehicle’s lithium ion battery began to see a downward turn in 2018. The Benchmark World Tour 2018 – the world’s leading investor forum for lithium ion supply chain … Continue reading DOWNLOAD: Lithium, cobalt prices enter new period of volatility as era of EV begins; vanadium awaits lithium ion moment
Prices of lithium carbonate, a key lithium ion battery raw material, have increased nearly 40% in the last 12 months as a wave of global electric vehicle (EV) production begins to have a sustained impact on the industry. Benchmark Mineral Intelligence’s Lithium Carbonate South America (99%, FOB) price – a region which accounts for 68% … Continue reading A new era for commodities as sustained lithium price run marks onset of EV demand – Benchmark Minerals
Since its inception in 2014, the rise of Benchmark Mineral Intelligence as the lithium industry’s reference price has been the ideal case study for how the commodities publishing industry is changing. Scandals such as libor and credit ratings fixes have brought scrutiny (and with it a police raid) on commodity price publishers. This has resulted … Continue reading Plight of the PRA and how Benchmark became the lithium industry’s reference price
Korean battery major LG Chem and China’s Huayou Cobalt have announced a huge deal to launch two plants that will have a significant bearing on the lithium ion battery industry’s cathode direction. The partnership will see a 40,000 tpa lithium ion battery precursor plant and a 40,000 tpa cathode plant being constructed within China over … Continue reading LG Chem / Huayou cobalt deal reshapes cathode landscape for electric vehicle batteries
This morning in Asia, Benchmark Mineral Intelligence made the cover story of China’s largest read English-language title, China Daily. The feature “Pole Position: From vehicle manufacturing and sales to battery production, China is racing ahead in the electric car industry” was written by industry journalist, Robert Blain, for China Daily, Asia Weekly. It feature quotes from … Continue reading HOW CHINA IS RACING AHEAD IN THE ELECTRIC CAR INDUSTRY – BENCHMARK MAKES CHINA DAILY COVER STORY
Demand for graphite (carbon) used as anode material in lithium ion batteries is set to increase by over 200% in the next four years as global cell production surges on the back of maturing pure electric vehicle demand and the inception of the utility storage market. New data from Benchmark Mineral Intelligence forecasts the anode … Continue reading Graphite demand from lithium ion batteries to more than treble in 4 years
Weak flake graphite concentrate demand has forced global capacity utilisation under 50% for a second consecutive year. Flake graphite is used primarily in the steel industry – in refractory bricks and as a recarburising agent – and as a feedstock for battery anodes. Although there was a marginal increase in production as a result of new … Continue reading Chart: Flake graphite capacity utilisation drops below 50%
China has overtaken Japan as the world’s leading producer of battery separators amid strong demand from lithium-ion batteries used in cars. The country’s incredible surge in production of low emissions vehicles in 2015 has seen it overtake in the US as the leading producer with annual growth of 290% compared to 2014. China is expected … Continue reading EV surge sees China top Japan as No.1 battery separator producer
Dissecting the battery revolution: Free, global seminars focusing on battery raw materials, supply chain challenges and opportunities > SPONSOR & SPEAK > DOWNLOAD THE BROCHURE Dates* London 10 September 2015 (click to attend) New York 17 September 2015 (click to attend) Toronto 24 September 2015 (click to attend) Vancouver 1 October 2015 (click to attend) Hong Kong 8 … Continue reading Benchmark World Tour dates announced