So, how much metal is in electric vehicles? How much lithium, cobalt, nickel and graphite are in the batteries in each car?
1.lithium
In December 2021, a record 25,900 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent were deployed in batteries for all new passenger electric vehicle sales worldwide, an increase of 68% year-on-year and a 31% month-on-month increase.
The average lithium content per vehicle, including hybrids, jumped 12% year-on-year in December, jumping from 18.5kg to 20.7kg, a testament to the relative popularity of BEVs relative to hybrids.
Carbonates accounted for 57% of the total, as demand for LFP cells free of nickel and cobalt continued to increase, while hydroxides, favored in the manufacture of batteries with high nickel content, accounted for 43%.
2.cobalt
Cobalt deployments exceeded 4,000 tonnes for the first time in December compared to the same period last year, up 25% month-on-month. On a per-vehicle basis, cobalt use was down 10% from last year, again demonstrating the growing popularity of LFP-equipped vehicles and the lower cobalt cathode chemistry of NCM batteries.
Cobalt’s share in the Electric Vehicle Metals Index continued to shrink, reaching 20.6% in December.
3.nickel
Nickel use rose 44% to a new record of 19,600 tonnes in December compared to the same month last year, while nickel use per vehicle fell 4% to 15.7kg.
4.graphite
In December 2021, less than 39,000 tonnes of synthetic and natural graphite were deployed in the batteries of all new passenger electric vehicles sold globally, also a record figure.
The monthly total was up 78% from a year earlier. Taking into account full battery, plug-in hybrid and conventional hybrid vehicles, graphite use per vehicle increased by 19% year-on-year to 31kg.
