Tesla is concerned about a worldwide lack of minerals necessary for production of electric vehicle batteries, together with the electric car maker recently warning major industry players and US government agents of an upcoming mineral supply challenge due to underinvestment in mining sources, according to a report released by Reuters. Representatives in the US government who are both aware and focused on the shortage issue have introduced legislation in the Senate to deal with delays rooted in the federal approval process. The bill, titled the “American Mineral Security Act”, was presented at the same conference where Tesla expressed its concerns.
“Our bill takes measures that are long overdue to undo our destructive foreign dependence and position ourselves to compete in growth industries like electric vehicles and energy storage,” Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), the main sponsor of the invoice , said in a statement regarding the legislation. Senators Joe Manchin (D-W. Virginia), Martha McSally (R-Arizona), and Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) are co-sponsors.
The bill specifically requires a list of critical minerals be compiled at least every three years together with a resource evaluation of those minerals nationally. This data is used to target and implement reforms in the federal regulatory process aimed at reducing flaws in the mining acceptance process.
Aerial images of this Tesla Gigafactory as of August 28, 2018. [Credit: Joshua Mcdonald]
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As a major consumer of minerals necessary for the production of electric vehicle (EV) batteries and other vehicle components, Tesla will need stable access to mined resources such as copper, nickel, and lithium in the long term. The expansion of the EV market will continue to boost demand for these tools. Other tech players like Amazon and Alphabet need the resources for the creation of their digital assistants and home connectivity devices.
Tesla’s global supply manager for battery alloys, Sarah Maryssael, spoke with representatives present at the industry conference about Tesla’s concerns concerning the company’s vitamin needs. Maryssael noted that a “huge potential” existed for mining partnerships in Australia and the US to assist with the supply issue citing a preliminary deal between the two countries in the region.
The global demand for copper, in particular, is expected to grow from the current 38,000 tons per day to 1.5 million tons by 2030, and this quote has driven major copper production companies to expand its mining activities in the US and Indonesia. Electric cars use twice as much copper as gas-powered cars, which makes the EV industry sensitive to its market availability.
Tesla’s needs from the mineral industry go well beyond copper. The organization ’s Nevada-based Gigafactory 1 facility is expected to hit 255 GWh yearly generation of batteries once complete. At that rate, the current global supply of lithium will need to increase nearly three times over to meet up with the demand. Unlike copper, though, investments in lithium production are ongoing, and Tesla’s ramping need for expansion that is substantial is being driven by the mineral within the mineral industry.
The post Tesla’s warning on battery mineral shortage addressed in new mining-reform legislation appeared initially on TESLARATI.
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