An electric car contains 50kg LCE,
- lithium carbonate price at US$20,000/ton, lithium cost per car: US$1,000;
- lithium carbonate price at US$30,000/ton, lithium cost per car: US$1,500;
- lithium carbonate price at US$40,000/ton, lithium cost per car: US$2,000;
- lithium carbonate price at US$50,000/ton, lithium cost per car: US$2,500.
Average new car price ~US$30,000.
The lithium material cost per EV is actually not significant, imo.
Some other figures:
2021 NEV (New energy vehicle including Battery EV and Plug in EV) sales:
- US: 600k units;
- China: 3.52 million units (80% BEVs, 20% PHEVs)
Total global new energy vehicles sales 6.31 million units.
2022 NEV sales forecast:
- US: 1 million units;
- China: 6 million units (5.5m passenger cars and 0.5m commercial cars; according to China Passenger Car Association)
2022 global new energy vehicles sales likely to surpass 10 million units.
Which will require additional 200Kt LCE from NEV alone for 2022. The limit incremental supply will underpin lithium price this year and probably over next few years as Bechmark Minerals Intelligence forecast a perpetual deficit for lithium.
It will be a bumpy year from broad market point of view, but for lithium stocks especially those with world class deposits should be doing well, imo.
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