Lithium News

@Tesla Chairwoman, Robyn Denholm, suggested Australia could move further up the value chain by making large-scale batteries and even electric vehicles. @elonmusk

The projected fourfold growth of the global EV fleet to 250 million vehicles by 2030 underpins a significant long-term demand forecast for critical materials. This includes the HPA & rare earth elements essential for advanced batteries & motors. iea.org/reports/global…

Guest post: How solar panels and batteries can now run ‘close to 24/365’ in some cities | @CleanPowerDave @kostantsa Read here: buff.ly/BfJzdxF

Lithium iron phosphate batteries, which are cheaper than their main nickel-based competitors, are gaining momentum This is underpinning the efforts of manufacturers to lower EV production costs & prices for consumers ➡️ iea.li/45LnyBk

This is Africa. Mali 🇲🇱 "Regulatory hurdles" have left Kodal Minerals $KOD unable to export more than 20,000 metric tonnes of #lithium concentrate out of Mali. It will be interesting to see what happens to Ganfeng's lithium asset in Mali, Goulamina and whether they are facing the same issues. reuters.com/world/africa/k…

"Twenty years ago, the main problem with renewables was that they were so expensive. Now, renewables are cheap, but we need to be able to match that supply to demand. For that, battery storage is clearly one of the best tools in the box.” More in @Bloomberg piece with my quotes.

Impressive size and cost. BESS coupled with solar is the chosen route forward. China is scaling BESS battery capacity ahead of forecasts. China’s Huadian announces winners in 6 GWh BESS tender with average bid at $65/kWh – pv magazine International pv-magazine.com/2025/03/24/chi…

Yes solar, but 👀 storage

Australia has just set a new national record for #battery output, but it is just a fraction of what is being seen in north American states like California reneweconomy.com.au/big-batteries-…

New German coalition agrees on renewable transition, electricity price cuts, and EV subsidies reneweconomy.com.au/new-german-coa…

A summer of record renewables, record demand highs and record demand lows, and no blackouts Source: RenewEconomy search.app/xbjs

Biggest coal generator has zero appetite for nuclear in a market where grid flexibility is king reneweconomy.com.au/biggest-coal-g…

@janrosenow Meanwhile, here's a little more light on electricity production in China x.com/JessePeltan/st…

A big contrast: From 2006 to 2023, China's nuclear energy production surged by 690%, rising from 55 TWh to 435 TWh. Meanwhile, Germany's nuclear output plummeted from 167 TWh to zero, making it the only major economy to fully phase out nuclear power.

Batteries aren't just for powering smartphones In 2016, the energy sector accounted for around 50% of global demand for batteries, about the same share as electronic devices By 2023, energy's share had risen above 90% - in a market 10 times the size → iea.li/3Qd6zP6

Solar is quickly outpacing nuclear in China. (This is in TWh of energy - not capacity - and nuclear would flatline if the vertical axis was percentage of electricity.)

New overview of @IEA outlooks vs reality from my friend @ChristianOnRE e.o. Nuclear consistently overestimated and solar underestimated. The supplement gives you an excel with the data to make your own graphs.

Rio Tinto turns to big batteries to underpin green smelters, as firmed renewables eclipse gas and coal reneweconomy.com.au/rio-tinto-turn…

We are pleased to announce exploration has discovered a new, outcropping, high-grade spodumene-bearing pegmatite within our Sirmac-Clapier Project in the Eeyou Istchee James Bay region of Quebec, Canada. Significantly the outcrop contains very high grade cesium mineralisation in addition to lithium mineralisation. Winsome Resources Managing Director Chris Evans said “new discoveries are always exciting at any stage of a company’s development and this is no exception.” wcsecure.weblink.com.au/pdf/WR1/029101…

Dec blew out expectations. My 2024 forecast was 186GWh, it was 205GWh! Next year my forecast jumps to nearly 400GWh, BESS (incl. behind-the-meter) will account for a fifth of global #lithium demand, 2x the 10% just two years ago. Deficit incoming faster than analysts think...

Waiting for those things to get up and running is a great way to be left behind while your competitors move ahead at exponential rates.

China built only 3.9 GW of nuclear in 2024 That's only 29% of the 13.5 GW of hydro and 1% of the 370.5 GW of #WindWaterSolar they built. Since China was the poster child for a nuclear renaissance, these data shows nuclear is useless for addressing climate, pollution, or energy.