Lithium in Latin America

• Autores: Juan Carlos Zuleta Calderón
• Localización: Industrial Minerals, ISSN 0019-8544, Nº. 560, 2014 (Ejemplar dedicado a: Mayo)
• Idioma: inglés
• Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
• Resumen

  • At first sight, this move seems to be in contrast to what Toyota has been saying all along with respect to completely electric vehicles (EVs). However, Toyotas business strategy with this regard consists of three parts: one, prepare for the transition to electric propulsion, in which case it makes sense for the Japanese motor giant to invest in lithium (as part of a long-term perspective); two, delay as much as possible the up-coming EV revolution so as not to kill its hybrid Prius, which explains why Toyota doesn't like (at least in the medium term) pure EVs; and three, go beyond lithium, which clarifies Toyota's recent inclination toward fuel cells.

    Second, I have also discovered that, during the period January-November 2013, Tesla Motors consumed 2,090 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE), which amounted to 72% of all the lithium required for the production of [Li]-ion batteries used by all the plug-in vehicles commercialised in the US and 68% of all the lithium required by all the hybrids and plug-ins sold in the same market.

    Assuming a lithium global demand of 168,000 tonnes for 2013, Tesla's lithium consumption that year would have been 1.24% of the world's lithium consumption. Hence to materialise its prospects to produce 500,000 EVs by 2020 in the US, Tesla would alone require between 40,800 and 59,442 tonnes LCE, which translates into between 24.29 and 35.38% of all LCE consumed in the world in 2013. These numbers were based on information on lithium content in Li-ion batteries using a Li-Ni-Co-Al chemistry as suggested by Argonne Laboratory.