Rare Earth Elements Vital for Electric Car Batteries: China’s Dominance

Rare earth elements, a group of 17 elements, are crucial for electric car motors, with electric cars using six times more rare earth metals than traditional cars due to the battery.

China leads significantly in extracting these rare earth metals, controlling every step of lithium-ion battery production, from raw material extraction to car manufacturing.

Although China has limited underground reserves of essential components, it has adopted a long-term strategy to secure cheap and steady supplies. Chinese companies have stakes in mining companies across five continents, owning most of the cobalt mines in Congo, which holds the majority of the world’s supply of this rare material necessary for battery production.

As a result, China controls 41% of global cobalt mining and the majority of lithium mining, which carries the battery’s electrical charge.

Despite global supplies of nickel, manganese, and graphite being much larger and only a small fraction used in batteries, China’s steady supply of these metals still gives it an edge.

Chinese investments in Indonesia are poised to make it the largest controller of nickel by 2027, while China also extracts a significant portion of graphite, along with rare earth metals, cobalt, and lithium, crucial raw materials for electric car batteries.

Government Investment: The Chinese government has heavily invested in the electric car battery industry, aiding in the development of new technologies and improving battery industry infrastructure, providing financial incentives to companies manufacturing or using electric car batteries.

Supply Chain Control: China controls many key raw materials for electric car battery production, reducing production costs and increasing its competitiveness.

Strong Manufacturing Base: China possesses a robust manufacturing base enabling it to produce large quantities of electric car batteries, helping it meet the growing demand for electric car batteries.

Research and Development: China heavily focuses on research and development in the field of electric car batteries, leading to the development of new technologies and improved performance of electric car batteries.