China’s dominance of the EV supply chain has raised global fears of a new trade war, as tensions between Beijing and Washington intensify over critical minerals.
ows of multicoloured electric vehicles built by China’s BYD are the star attraction in Singapore’s Suntec City shopping mall.
In the meantime, however, Europe and the US are focused on securing supplies of battery metals such as lithium to feed their own nascent battery-making industries. Chinese-controlled mines around the world will account for 705,000 tonnes of battery-grade processed lithium by 2025, from just 194,00 tonnes in 2022, UBS analysts estimate. This would give it control of 32 per cent of global lithium supply, from 24 per cent last year.and SQM in Australian miners reflect this fight to secure battery minerals.
South-west China’s Sichuan province said this year it wanted to become a “world-class lithium battery production base” within the next five years.Under Xi Jinping’s Made in China 2025 initiative, launched in 2015, electric vehicles and batteries enjoy generous government subsidies and incentives. “That’s unusual, and they’re almost becoming competitors to the normal providers of finance. I wouldn’t be surprised to see more of that.”
Other big Australian players in what is being called the second lithium boom are Pilbara Minerals, now worth $13 billion compared with $400 million in 2020, Mineral Resources, Allkem and IGO. Rio Tinto is developing lithium projects in Argentina, Serbia and California. The minister says he plans to take Australia’s Investment Minister Ed Husic to the Morowali site when he visits in November, saying Australia could also take an equity in the processing site.
Australia, Chile and Argentina together account for about 80 per cent of raw lithium extraction from salt pans, rock and clay, much of which is sold to China for processing.“We are seeing a bit of a race in the region and everyone is trying to attract investment. Everyone is trying to entice these companies to set up,” says Goh, who is a big fan of the BYD showroom not far from his office in Singapore.“Indonesia, for example, is a huge player.
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