Tesla Inc.
Benchmark Mineral Intelligenceestimates that the amount of graphite neededfor the anode material in lithium-ion batteries, such as those in Tesla's vehicles and Powerwall, willincrease bynine-fold over the next decade.
At least 125 million electric vehicles are expected to be traveling global highways by 2030, which means the world is going to need a lot more graphite in the coming decade and beyond.
This is because graphite serves as the anode in the lithium-ion batteries that power these EVs, not to mention the growing number of portable tools and electronics that use the same type of battery.
According to Mineral Commodity Summaries 2019, an annual report published by the United States Geological Survey, there are currently no graphite mines in the United States, a dearth that required domestic manufacturers to import mined graphite for roughly 40,000 metric tons of the carboniferous material used in the U.S. during 2018.
China was the largest supplier of this graphite, followed by Mexico, Canada and Brazil.
This dependence on foreign suppliers and rocketing demand are the key reasons USGS includes graphite on its list of 35 minerals and metals considered critical to the United States.
USGS sees a major spike in U.S. demand for graphite when Tesla Motor's Gigafactory, an enormous lithium-ion battery facility being constructed in Nevada, is fully operational.
The Gigafactory, partially complete, is producing the batteries going into the cars coming off Tesla's assembly-line.
Once complete, this 10-million-square-foot plant in Nevada is expected to be able to manufacture enough batteries for roughly half a million Tesla's per year.
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