Tesla, Apple and Google Scrambling for Graphite Supplies

30 October 2017

Our rapidly evolving energy future – packed with electric vehicles, massive energy storage solutions and nanotechnology – requires more tech-grade graphite than it does lithium and cobalt.

If shortages for lithium and cobalt are looming large, shortages of graphite are even scarier. The United States is the biggest consumer, and it doesn’t even produce any tech-grade graphite.

With demand for tech-grade graphite expected to increase 200 percent in less than three years, and 300 percent by 2025, North America will have to go from graphite zero to hero—fast.

In North America, there’s no better place to be than in the backyard of Tesla’s Nevada battery gigafactory, and one little-known company is right there—sitting on what could prove to be a rare working tech-grade graphite mine in the U.S.

Global Li-Ion Graphite Corporation now has an option on the only graphite exploration property within 50 miles of Tesla’s gigafactory.

Demand for graphite for lithium-ion batteries will explode over 200 percent in the next four years driven by the EV surge and energy storage alone.

The timing couldn’t be better. Prices are soaring, with spot prices for graphite electrodes hitting $35,000 as Chinese exports dry up.

So this is the next wave of graphite that early-in investors will be trying to ride, if they’re savvy, and LION wants to be the first to take advantage of a clear supply gap right in Tesla’s back yard.

And this wave is just about graphite. The next wave will be about graphene—the layers that make up graphite. This wonder metal is poised to be a game-changer even bigger than the leap from transistors to microchips. It’s the strongest material on the planet, and right now we’re in a global race to the finish line.

Here are 5 reasons to keep a close eye on Global Li-Ion Graphite Corporation on the tip of this next wave.

1 Potentially Bigger and Better than Lithium or Cobalt

This isn’t just about pencils. Graphite is one of the two mineral forms of carbon. The other is diamonds. It has tons of industrial uses, all of them about to be starved for supply, based on analysts’ predictions.

So while it may be famous for its use in pencils, it’s also one of the keys to our EV future: Lithium-ion batteries have a lithium cathode and a graphite anode. Tesla would probably agree that securing supplies of graphite for its gigafactory is even more critical than securing supplies of lithium and cobalt.

And it’s not just about the batteries—graphite is used in other car parts, including brake linings.

Graphite is also used to manufacture steel and glass, and to process iron because it’s a common refractory material that withstands high temperatures without changing chemically.

SOURCE:  Next Big Future