Not Gunna Be Enough Lithium, page-186

Can the West fix its battery raw material disconnect?

A growing disconnect between battery demand and raw material supply could derail Europe's and North America's electrification plans. Data from Benchmark’s Lithium Forecast shows how this growing disconnect could lead to an annual lithium supply shortfall of up to 225,000 tonnes in North America and 500,000 tonnes in Europe by 2030. Benchmark’s Cameron Perks, Senior Analyst, explained that “in general, there is a lack of understanding of just how much lithium is required to fuel electric vehicle demand going forward. Some investors may have been scared away by the previous low-price environment. But it’s important to reiterate that we are in a completely different world now in terms of demand.” Perks said that to incentivise investment “there is going to have to be a sustained period of higher prices than we have seen over the past few years.” He added that while investment is important “there also has to be some level of education for decision makers on the severity of the shortfall and how much money and time it realistically takes to get a mine into operation and ramped up.” Benchmark Membership subscribers can read our analysis here.