Battery metals tracker Adamas Intelligence says that in March 2019, battery capacity deployed worldwide in battery electric cars (including hybrids) nearly doubled from the same month last year.
The Dutch-Canadian research company, which tracks EV registrations and battery chemistries in more than 80 countries, says 9.76 GWh of passenger EV battery capacity was deployed globally – a 94% year-over-year surge:
This increase in battery capacity deployed is especially remarkable when considering that global EV sales increased by a mere 25% over the same period, speaking to the fact that a far greater number of high-capacity battery EVs (like the Tesla Model 3) were sold this March than the last.
Adamas says based on data from its EV Battery Capacity Monthly study, the sales-weighted average capacity of batteries used in electric cars was 55% higher in March compared to 2018.
Lithium prices have remained under pressure despite the surge in global demand for lithium-ion battery-powered vehicles. The lithium price index compiled by battery supply chain research and advisory firm Benchmark Mineral Intelligence retreated in April and is now down 38% over the past year.
The free-on-board price of lithium carbonate exported from South America’s brine fields now sits at $12,750 a tonne, while spodumene concentrate (6% lithium oxide) from hard-rock lithium mines in Australia is priced at $640 a tonne, down 27% so far in 2019.
Source: mining
