EV uptake adding to lithium price spike
The global uptake in electric vehicles is contributing to the price of materials used to make lithium batteries, information specialist Roskill has revealed.
6th May 2016 by Networks
In a new report analysing the state of the lithium market Roskill said several issues, including the impact of the growing EV market, caused the price of hydroxide to jump by 20% in 2015.
Roskill said the price of lithium carbonate, also used in the production process, has risen by a similar amount so far in 2016.
The report predicted that demand from the battery industry will triple by 2025, but supply growth will be hampered by other industries such as ceramics, glass-ceramics, grease and polymers.
Roskill said it expected a minimum growth of 6.4% per year to 2025, but this could rise to 9.3% per year if demand from the EV and energy storage system (ESS) markets increase.
Rechargeable batteries such as that used in EVs and ESS batteries for grid support accounted for 37% of the total global consumption in 2015.
EVs alone accounted for 30% of the lithium-ion battery market in 2015, mainly due to a surge in the Chinese EV and e-bus market in 2015.
Lithium-ion is one of the most market-ready technologies currently being used in ESS systems today.
How battery storage will be licensed in the UK going forward is currently under debate, with Decc leaving the door open to distribution network operators being allowed to own storage despite Ofgem ruling it out earlier this month.
Stewart Reid, head of asset management and innovation, Scottish and Southern Energy Power Distribution has set out his projection for the future of the EV market and what it will mean for distribution network operators. Read more here.
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