<>Electric Cars and China.

NEW York Times: “The U.S. Needs Minerals for Electric Cars. Everyone Else Wants Them Too.” And adds: “The United States is entering an array of agreements to secure the critical minerals necessary for the energy transition, but it’s not clear which of the arrangements can succeed.” 

       To run, EVs require six times the mineral input, by weight, of conventional vehicles. These minerals are needed and America’s push for “climate change” autos is hobbled by impending shortage of those valuable thingies, which the U.S. doesn’t have much. Importation is imperative.  

       What are those? Cobalt, nickel, lithium and manganese. But mining and processing them can be harmful for workers, their communities and the local environment. Here are the top 5 cobalt producers by country: Democratic Republic of Congo, Russia, Australia, Canada, and the Philippines. Nickel: Indonesia, Philippines, Russia. Lithium: Chile, Australia, Argentina, China. Within Europe, Portugal has smaller quantities of the valuable raw material. Manganese: South Africa, China, Australia, Gabon.

       Leading U.S. electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla gets most of its lithium from China’s Ganfeng Lithium. At the end of 2021, Tesla inked a fresh three year lithium supply deal with the top lithium producer. News: “Can the World Make an Electric Car Battery Without China?” And adds: “From mines to refineries and factories, China began investing decades ago. Today, most of your electric car batteries are made in China and that’s unlikely to change soon.”       

And then we talk, again, of Foxconn, main manufacturer of top U.S. technology giants, mainly Apple Inc. Taiwan-owned Foxconn has 12 factories in China, including the largest in Shenzhen province. Main supplier of Foxconn’s silicon (for microchips) is, of course, China. 🚕🔋🚙