Electric car rush drives rare earths arms race
Shortage of key materials and rising demand prompt urgent calls for action to avoid supply issues
21 February 2021 • 5:29pm
Car companies’ rush to go all-electric is likely to drive an arms race between manufacturers as they fight to source the exotic materials needed to produce batteries for the eco-friendly vehicles.
In the past fortnight industry giants GM and Ford have detailed plans to stop making cars powered by conventional internal combustion engines over the next decade or so.
Britain’s biggest car maker, Jaguar Land Rover, has also set out similar plans, following on from Volvo, which expects to be fully electric by 2030.
Fears of EV material shortage loom large in Europe by Autocar UK 14 Jan 2021 The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Chile are the world’s biggest producers of cobalt and lithium as well as the EU’s biggest suppliers. (Image: Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile)
Plans to phase out internal-combustion-engined cars could be scuppered by the location and supply of some key materials required to produce electric vehicles.
Prior to the UK government’s announcement of its planned 2030 ban on new ICE cars, the European Commission voiced concerns about the EU’s capacity to gather resources in a report called Critical Raw Materials Resilience: Charting a Path Towards Greater Security and Sustainability.
Date: 17 December 2020 Â Â |Â Â Author: Jack Carfrae
The political landscape and location of key electric vehicle components could be a sticking point for the government s bold EV plans.
The UK government s ambitious plans to phase out sales of new internal combustion-engined cars from 2030 could be hindered by the locations of key raw materials required for electric vehicle production and the ability to secure supply. Â
A report by the European Commission called Critical Raw Materials Resilience: Charting a Path towards Greater Security and Sustainability, published in September 2020, highlighted the bloc s concerns about its capacity to gather resources. It illustrated the continent s relative lack of natural materials in comparison to other areas of the world, especially China, which is the biggest supplier of 10 such resources to the European Union. Â