Heard on the Street: Car makers are increasingly focusing on the environmental impact of making electric vehicles. While necessary, such efforts could slow the technology’s adoption.
among others, last week raised $2.75 billion to further expand its low-carbon production facility in northern Sweden, where hydroelectric power is plentiful.used to worry more about cobalt
, which is sourced mainly from the Democratic Republic of Congo amid charges of child labor, but in recent years the metal’s role in battery chemistry has shrunk. Lithium can’t so easily be minimized in lithium batteries. The stocks of U.S. producers Albemarle andAuto makers Volkswagen and Daimler, German chemical giant BASF and smartphone maker Fairphone last week formed a “responsible lithium partnership” to protect the area in Chile that produces much of the global supply.
Focusing on how mass battery production affects the planet makes complete sense given the largely environmental reasons for scaling up the technology. However, it necessarily comes at a price. Extracting cost reductions from the battery supply chain, which is necessary to make EVs more affordable, becomes harder and slower if auto makers limit themselves to metal supplies they can certify.
Because lithium batteries spread around the world in mobile phones, it is sometimes mistakenly assumed they are subject to the same deflationary trends as the microelectronics industry, which has thrived amid the global abundance of silicon for semiconductors. Batteries are an industrial product highly dependent on metals that, while mostly not rare, will take time to get out of the ground responsibly at scale.
Wealthy consumers might continue to adopt luxury EVs, but in the absence of generous subsidies it is hard to see the technology taking over much of the mass market until they are cheaper than traditional cars. Many forecasters currently expect that to happen around the middle of this decade. The need to keep EVs green is, ironically, another reason why such hopes might prove optimistic.Volkswagen is investing in electric vehicles more than other legacy car makers in the U.S.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Green SPACs Struggle After Years of SuccessAs blank check companies contend with souring stock-market sentiment, those that focus on environmental and social investing are being hit particularly hard. The weak performance may point to a deeper problem with SPACs and specifically green investments: There is too much money chasing too few good companies.
Read more »
Opioid plaintiffs get green light to depose Walmart CEOPlaintiffs in multidistrict litigation over the nationwide opioid epidemic can depose Walmart Inc CEO Doug McMillon over the company's objection, a federal court special master has ruled.
Read more »
Croatian island eyes green energy self-sufficiency in this decadeThe northern Adriatic island of Krk, among the biggest in Croatia, looks headed towards energy self-sufficiency by the end of the decade in what environmentalists say is an example for the Mediterranean in transition to green and sustainable power.
Read more »
Acciona IPO wilts under green energy discountSpain’s Acciona (ANA.MC) IPO has blown a fuse. Late on Thursday, the Madrid-listed infrastructure company announced .
Read more »
Thieves Find Money That Grows on Trees: ‘Avocados Are the Green Gold’'Avocados are the green gold.' Thieves are striking groves around the world, hauling off the green fruit by the ton. Farmers have turned to infrared cameras, barbed wire and security teams.
Read more »
Reinsurers look at dumping coal from bulk-buy policies in green gambitMajor reinsurers have already pulled back from providing bespoke cover for coal projects as part of efforts to meet global climate change commitments, but now comes the hard part - finding ways to exclude coal from bulk-buy contracts, known as 'treaty' reinsurance.
Read more »