According to foreign media reports, Moody's Investors Service wrote in a note to customers that there are shortages of metals such as cobalt, copper, lithium, nickel, etc., or it will slow down the production of electric vehicle battery. .

With the increase in the production of Tesla and other automakers, the demand for vehicle-mounted battery metal has also increased. In addition, with the transformation of the electric vehicle industry, many companies are committed to building a network of electric vehicle charging stations with the aim of increasing the penetration rate of electric vehicles and further increasing the above-mentioned demand for battery metals. However, due to the limited supply of metals such as copper and nickel, the production of electric vehicles may slow down.

At present, the supply gap for refined copper and nickel will increase, while the demand for cobalt supply may become apparent next year. If the output of electric vehicles is lower than expected, lithium metal will be oversupply after 2019.

Mining is currently required to invest in new mines to meet rising demand, but the current funding for mining is relatively small, because the industry is still paying for mergers and acquisitions caused by the miscalculation of the situation four years ago. Major mining companies are committed to achieving revenue. Branch balance.

In most cases, the cobalt metal is a copper or nickel companion, and the increase in production will depend to a large extent on the exploitation of copper and nickel new mines.

The rise in metal prices will benefit miners, but it will cause market price volatility. Batteries are the most expensive part of electric vehicles, and rising battery metal prices are forcing the auto industry to explore new alternative battery materials. (This article is taken from marketwatch.com)