The Battery Trail
The picture a simple rendition of the EV battery. Within that battery are six maybe seven different metals as shown on the below image of the Periodic Table of the Elements. Each EV battery has its own mix of these metals depending on the inhouse technologies used by battery manufacturers.
The battery though is also the differentiator. The most expensive, complex and largest part of the vehicle and the least green. The battery is a long, complicated and convoluted trail of those different metals, and components, coming together as one. At JTC Energy Research we will put that together and follow what I call The Battery Trail.
African Rail Network
Lobito Corridor America & EU last chance for Atlantic Ocean exit The Atlantic Ocean, although tantalizingly close was yet unused until a trial shipment of copper in December 2023 was sent by the long dormant "Lobito rail line". Currently, copper…DRC/Zambia: Where is the U.S.A. ?
Zambia: Major players such as China, followed by Canada and Australia, are involved in direct operations, joint ventures, and capital contributions, continuously expanding their capacity in Zambia. In 2023, the output was 698,000 tons, ranking as the seventh-largest producer globally,…Africa’s infrastructure: A 99 year old refurbished rail line now offers a third way to transport metals off the continent via Atlantic Ocean.
"The Lobito Atlantic Railway" Africa's copper & cobalt once a 50 day journey until 2024, a long defunct rail line has been refurbished cutting the transit time to just six days. A first shipment of copper cathodes originating in the…
Dirty Nickel
Indonesia Nickel Mine ESG fallacies, a double standard dirty secret of your lithium-ion batteries. Country in focus: Indonesia’s nickel mines. Indonesia, with China in tow, now control world nickel markets with a 55% share of global supply and price around…
