Decentralizing lithium refining key to scaling battery manufacturing and recycling.
Over the past year, North America has made huge strides in reshoring the lithium supply chain.
The Biden Administration is investing $74 million in lithium battery recycling technology on top of the $2.8 billion set aside for domestic battery manufacturing; Canada is making strides in its Critical Minerals Strategy, and Mexico has plans to start battery manufacturing this year. The private sector is taking note too, with multiple electric vehicle manufacturers announcing partnerships with lithium mining companies. The continent is getting serious about securing a reliable lithium supply.
But we aren’t out of the woods yet.
Lukasz Bednarski at S&P Global, said:
Producing 362,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent by 2032 but have to ship 300,000 tonnes of it for processing overseas because of refinery shortages.
If we are to meet our clean energy targets — such as having electric vehicles make up half of all vehicle sales in America by 2030 — we not only need to bring lithium refining home to where lithium extraction and battery manufacturing are happening, but we need to scale it as soon as possible.
While each aspect of battery manufacturing is important, North America should make lithium refining and battery recycling a top priority. The centralization of lithium refining in China is causing a bottleneck in the supply chain, holding back up to 350 million electric vehicles by 2040 and stifling much-needed battery tech innovation.
By that same year, all of the lithium mined last year will only meet one month’s demand, even with the supply from recycled batteries. Every year, the world will need more than twenty times the amount of lithium than was mined in 2021 to meet demand by mid-century. In fact, we will need a staggering 234 new lithium mines by 2050 to meet this demand. Only about 40 mines produced lithium last year. The solution to this bottleneck is to extract and refine lithium in more places.
In the traditional refining process, lithium from brines can only produce lithium hydroxide by first producing lithium carbonate and then converting it to lithium hydroxide. This conversion process mostly takes place in China. In fact, while China only produces around 13% of the world’s lithium, it is responsible for refining nearly 60% of the global supply – a monopoly by most standards. This adds a significant amount of time and extra cost to lithium battery production.
In the coming years, the first generation of electric vehicles and battery storage will be retired, and that lithium will need to be reclaimed. Increasing lithium battery recycling and using lithium as efficiently as possible will not only help meet demand, but will also help the industry battle bad press from lithium battery fires; adopting more safe local lithium recycling facilities with their own refining units can increase incentives to recycle batteries instead of trashing them.
The new levels of investments we’re seeing proves a long term interest and confidence in the industry. Lithium batteries are here to stay. North America can lead the world in battery recycling, but we must keep lithium refining here. If we don’t, we will miss out on a battery recycling industry that is predicted to reach $991 million by 2030. If we do not prioritize solving the lithium bottleneck through expanded recycling, other countries will.
Carl McBeath is a marketing and communications expert with a passion for amplifying the message of organizations focused on sustainability, renewable energy and the fight against climate change. After previously working marcomm for government and non-profit organizations, Carl is using his background in science to help communicate how Mangrove Lithium can change the landscape of the lithium supply chain as their Marketing Manager.
Jose Francisco Velasco Davis is VP of Commercialization at Mangrove Lithium. He has 20 years of experience in the chemicals, battery and automotive industries where he has helped companies meet supply chain, financial and environmental goals.
Decentralizing lithium refining key to scaling battery manufacturing and recycling, April 12, 2023
