Jack Aylmer, Reporter
WHEN IT COMES TO LITHIUM-ION BATTERY PRODUCTION, THERE’S NO QUESTION CHINA LEADS THE WAY.THE NATION ACCOUNTS FOR 77% OF ALL BATTERY MANUFACTURING CAPACITY. POLAND AND THE UNITED STATES ARE NEXT WITH JUST 6%. CHINA CURRENTLY CONTROLS BETWEEN 60 TO 100% PERCENT OF THE MINING OR REFINING FOR THE VARIOUS MINERALS NEEDED TO MAKE THESE BATTERIES.EXPERTS SAY THE U.S. IS “10 to 20 YEARS BEHIND ASIA IN COMMERCIALIZATION OF BATTERY TECHNOLOGY.”IT’S A MARKET CHINA IS BETTING BIG ON AS WESTERN GOVERNMENTS PUSH TO TRANSITION TO EVS. EXPERTS PREDICT DEMAND WILL INCREASE 700% BY 2035.
John Quelch, former associate in research at Harvard’s Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies and fellow of the Harvard China Fund:
“When we’re talking about battery technology, battery technology is really a derived demand. That is responding to the demand level for electric vehicles.”Jack Aylmer, Reporter
LITHIUM-ION TECHNOLOGY POWERS EVS, WHICH BY SOME ESTIMATES.. COULD REACH 86% OF GLOBAL VEHICLE SALES BY 2030. SO, WITH CHINA DOMINATING THE BATTERY SECTOR, IT’S NOT SURPRISING THE COUNTRY HAS SPEARHEADED THE EV TRANSITION.
John Quelch
“The Chinese have been very aggressive in motivating the purchase of electric vehicles, which represent a much higher percentage of new vehicle sales in China than they do in the United States.
Jack Aylmer, Reporter
CHINA CHARGED UP ITS EV SALES AFTER BEIJING ROLLED OUT A $72 BILLION PACKAGE OF TAX BREAKS FOR THE INDUSTRY OVER THE SUMMER. DURING THE FIRST HALF OF THIS YEAR, CHINA ACCOUNTED FOR 55% OF ALL ELECTRIC VEHICLES SOLD. AT THE SAME TIME, THE U.S. WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR 13% OF GLOBAL EV SALES.AS A RESULT, CONGRESSIONAL MEMBERS HAVE URGED THE ENERGY DEPARTMENT TO BOOST U.S. LITHIUM BATTERY PRODUCTION, OR FACE GETTING LEFT IN THE DUST BY CHINA AMID AN ANTICIPATED EV-DRIVEN FUTURE.