Over the next five years, demand for electric vehicles (EV) and electric storage systems (ESS) is expected to record a compound annual growth rate of 20 percent and 10 percent, respectively.
Technological developments and the maturing of battery technology as a viable source of power have led to new requirements in terms of natural resources. Lithium, cobalt, graphite, nickel, aluminum and copper are highly likely to benefit from surging battery demand.
Battery Boom, Why Now?
The declining costs of batteries, stricter emissions norms and regulatory incentives (tax exemptions and subsidies) all support the trend toward battery-powered vehicles. The EU passenger car emissions target of 95 g/km for 2020, the USA’s target of 93 g/km by 2025, Japan’s 105 g/km by 2020 and China’s 117 g/km by 2020 will be close to impossible to meet without adding EV to all fleets, which currently produce emissions of around 200 g/km. At the same time, technological developments have pushed the energy density of batteries significantly higher and costs significantly lower over the past decade. In 2008, the cost per kilowatt hour for batteries was about USD 1,000. In 2015, the International Energy Agency defined the cost at around USD 250 and forecast it to come down to USD 150 by 2022. This should help the industry wean itself off purchase incentives.