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Expand Domestic Mining and Processing:
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Increase Exploration and Development: Streamline permitting processes to expedite new mining projects. The U.S. has significant untapped deposits (e.g., lithium in Nevada, REEs in Wyoming and California). The 2020 USGS report identified 50 critical minerals, many with domestic potential.
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Reopen and Modernize Existing Mines: Revive dormant mines like the Mountain Pass REE mine in California, ensuring they meet modern environmental standards.
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Build Processing Capacity: Currently, the U.S. lacks sufficient refining facilities, sending raw materials overseas (e.g., to China). Invest in domestic smelting and refining infrastructure to process minerals locally.
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Invest in Technology and Innovation:
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Advanced Extraction Methods: Fund research into environmentally friendly extraction techniques, like bioleaching or direct lithium extraction, to reduce ecological impact and costs.
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Recycling and Urban Mining: Develop efficient recycling programs for batteries and electronics to recover cobalt, lithium, and REEs. The U.S. Department of Energy’s ReCell Center is already exploring this.
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Substitute Materials: Support R&D for alternatives to scarce minerals (e.g., sodium-ion batteries instead of lithium-ion).
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Secure Supply Chains:
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Stockpiling: Expand the National Defense Stockpile to include critical minerals for emergency use, as recommended by the 2018 Department of Interior’s critical minerals list.
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Allied Partnerships: Strengthen trade agreements with mineral-rich allies like Canada (nickel, cobalt) and Australia (lithium, REEs) to diversify away from adversarial suppliers like China, which dominates 60-80% of global REE production.
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Counter Foreign Influence: Use tariffs or sanctions to limit reliance on Chinese-controlled supply chains, while incentivizing domestic production through tax breaks or subsidies.
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Policy and Workforce Development:
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Legislative Support: Pass bills like the proposed Critical Minerals Policy Act to fund mining, R&D, and workforce training. The Inflation Reduction Act (2022) already provides some incentives for clean energy minerals.
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Environmental Balance: Implement clear, consistent regulations to balance mining with environmental concerns, addressing local opposition (e.g., NIMBYism) through community engagement.
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Skilled Workforce: Expand training programs for mining engineers, geologists, and processing technicians, as the U.S. faces a shortage of skilled labor.
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International and Ethical Considerations:
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Reduce Geopolitical Risks: Avoid over-reliance on unstable regions (e.g., cobalt from the DRC, where child labor and conflict are issues). Domestic production ensures ethical standards.
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Global Competition: Recognize that total independence may be impractical due to cost and scale. Focus on resilience—ensuring supply chain security rather than 100% self-sufficiency.
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Time: Building mines and processing plants takes 5-10 years, even with streamlined permits.
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Cost: Domestic production is often more expensive than importing from low-cost producers like China.
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Environmental Pushback: Mining projects face opposition from environmental groups and local communities, requiring careful navigation.
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Global Market Dynamics: China’s dominance in processing and pricing could undercut U.S. efforts unless countered by subsidies or tariffs.
Note: Excludes trade within regions.
China has a major role at each stage of the global battery supply chain and dominates interregional trade of minerals. China imported almost 12 million short tons of raw and processed battery minerals, accounting for 44% of interregional trade, and exported almost 11 million short tons of battery materials, packs, and components, or 58% of interregional trade in 2023, according to regional UN Comtrade data.
In this article, we consider trade of three key minerals needed for batteries—graphite, lithium, and cobalt—among China and key global regions. These minerals are mined or extracted from natural and synthetic sources, processed for battery material manufacturing, and then used to produce batteries and battery components, with robust trade at each stage. As global demand for electric vehicles, energy storage, and other energy technologies increases, the importance of these minerals and materials also increases.
Battery mineral production and raw battery minerals trade
Lithium is produced through brine extraction or hard rock mining, cobalt is primarily produced as a byproduct of nickel and copper mining, and graphite is mined as a natural ore or synthetically produced from pitch and coke. China domestically produced approximately 18% (33,000 short tons) of the world’s mined lithium in 2023, and Chinese companies control 25% of the world’s lithium mining capacity.
According to the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency’s Tearline Project, Chinese companies have significant investments in multiple mining and extraction projects in Argentina, giving China access to the lithium triangle, an area in Argentina, Bolivia, and Chile that contains 50% of the world’s lithium. Domestically, China produced 79%, or 1.27 million short tons, of the world’s natural graphite in 2024, according to the U.S. Geological Survey; the United States did not produce any natural graphite that year. Chinese companies own 80% of cobalt production in Congo-Kinshasa, where more than half of global cobalt production is located.
After production, raw battery minerals are shipped globally to be used as feedstock for refining. China accounted for 46% of the world’s raw battery mineral import trade in 2023, according to the UN Comtrade data. Australia, the world’s largest lithium producer, sent almost all its exports to China alone. China, Australia, and the rest of Asia and Oceania (particularly India and Japan) accounted for 71% of the world’s raw battery mineral import trade in 2023.
Battery mineral processing and processed battery minerals trade
China processes over 90% of the world’s graphite, and in 2022, Chinese companies accounted for over two-thirds of the world’s cobalt and lithium processing capacity.
China imported 20% of the world’s processed battery minerals in 2023, made up of mainly cobalt from Africa. That same year, China exported 58% of the world’s processed battery minerals, mainly synthetic graphite to the rest of Asia and Oceania. China began implementing export restrictions on graphite products related to electrode manufacturing in 2023, and we expect such restrictions to lead to lower graphite exports from China in 2024 and 2025.
Battery materials manufacturing and battery materials and component trade
Processed battery minerals are used to produce battery materials, which vary depending on a battery’s chemical composition. China accounted for 53% of the world’s battery material export trade in 2023.
Battery materials are then used to produce battery components like electrodes, electrolytes, and separators. For example, a lithium-ion battery cell usually includes a graphite anode, lithium-based cathode, and a dissolved lithium salt electrolyte. In 2022, China produced 85% of the world’s anodes, 82% of electrolytes, 74% of separators, and 70% of cathodes.
China accounted for 74% of the world’s battery pack and component exports in 2023. That same year, China controlled nearly 85% of the world’s battery cell production capacity by monetary value.
Note: Excludes trade within regions. Product classifications and selected Harmonized System codes for raw battery minerals, processed battery minerals, battery materials, and battery packs and components are based on the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development technical note on critical minerals (2023).
The post China dominates global trade of battery minerals – What will it take for the U.S. to get on it’s own production supply line? appeared first on Energy News Beat.
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