Europe Adds Lithium to Critical Raw Materials List for EV Push

Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--Europe has added lithium to its Critical Raw Materials list for the first time as the region sets out to be a global leader in the shift to electric vehicles (EVs).

This list, which is updated every three years, identifies the raw materials that the European Commission (EC) deem as the "most important economically and have a high supply risk." The list is made up of 30 critical raw materials, and lithium, which is essential for Europe's goal to become a world leader in electric vehicle (EV) rollout and EV battery production, has been added to the list for the first time.

Maros Sefčovič, vice president for Inter-institutional Relations and Foresight at the Commission said: "A secure and sustainable supply of raw materials is a prerequisite for a resilient economy. For e-car batteries and energy storage alone, Europe will for instance need up to 18 times more lithium by 2030 and up to 60 times more by 2050. As our foresight shows, we cannot allow to replace current reliance on fossil fuels with dependency on critical raw materials. This has been magnified by the coronavirus disruptions in our strategic value chains. We will therefore build a strong alliance to collectively shift from high dependency to diversified, sustainable and socially-responsible sourcing, circularity and innovation".

Thierry Breton, commissioner for Internal Market, said: "A number of raw materials are essential for Europe to lead the green and digital transition and remain the world's first industrial continent. We cannot afford to rely entirely on third countries for some rare earths, even on just one country. By diversifying the supply from third countries and developing the EU's own capacity for extraction, processing, recycling, refining and separation of rare earths, we can become more resilient and sustainable. Implementing the actions that we propose today will require a concerted effort by industry, civil society, regions and Member States. We encourage the latter to include investments into critical raw materials into their national recovery plans."

A European Raw Materials Alliance will be formed in the coming months to focus on the most pressing needs, which is to increase EU resilience in the rare earths and magnets value chain, which are seen as vital to most EU industrial ecosystems, including renewable energy, defence and space.

The EU recognises that it is too dependent on other countries for either the supply or processing of many of its critical raw materials and that the supply of many critical raw materials is highly concentrated. For example, China provides 98% of the EU's supply of rare earth elements (REE), Turkey provides 98% of the EU's supply of borate, and South Africa provides 71% of the EU's needs for platinum and an even higher share of the platinum group metals iridium, rhodium, and ruthenium. The EU also relies on single EU companies for its supply of hafnium and strontium while certain materials mined in Europe (like lithium) currently have to leave Europe for processing.

"Gaps in EU capacity for extraction, processing, recycling, refining and separation capacities (e.g. for lithium or rare earths) reflect a lack of resilience and a high dependency on supply from other parts of the world," it stated in its Critical Raw Materials Resilience report. "The technologies, capabilities and skills in refining and metallurgy are a crucial link in the value chain."

For electric vehicle batteries and energy storage, the EU would need up to 18 times more lithium and five times more cobalt in 2030, and almost 60 times more lithium and 15 times more cobalt in 2050, compared to the current supply to the whole EU economy. If not addressed, this increase in demand may lead to supply issues. Through the European Battery Alliance, public and private investment has been mobilised at scale and should lead to 80% of Europe's lithium demand being supplied from European sources by 2025, the Commission noted.

In 2018, Industrial Info reported that the European Battery Alliance had announced financial backing for the region's largest planned electric battery production plant in Sweden. The 'Gigafactory' project is being developed by Northvolt (Stockholm, Sweden) which was formed by two former senior executives at Tesla Motors Incorporated (NASDAQ:TSLA) (Palo Alto, California). For additional information, see March 1, 2018, article--Europe Funds First Battery 'Gigafactory'.

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