How does China influence the supply chain?

China governs the largest production shares within the supply chain (11 out of 12). China, Europe and the USA use capital power to boost impact across the supply chain. Political factors further strengthen China's control in mining. China's dominance in LFP-production exceeds 98 %.

Where do lithium batteries come from?

In Europe, Serbia is a likely source of lithium minerals for conversion to chemicals, and Norway a reliable source of flake and refined graphite. Figure 3 – Projection of production capacity for battery-grade processed raw materials and cells in 2030

Which materials are used in lithium ion batteries?

Lithium, nickel, manganese, and cobalt are of particular significance for the dominant lithium-ion battery (LIB) technology, primarily relying on lithium iron phosphate (LFP) and lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC) cathodes. Geographically, the global supply is heavily reliant on China with competition expected to intensify.

Where does lithium come from?

Conversely, most inputs for producing refined lithium compounds will originate from the development of new lithium mines in the EU. The refining of natural graphite for anodes will rely on both domestic production and imports.