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I am not as pessimistic about lithium as that. "according to a 2011 study conducted at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the University of California,
by bjelkeman-again 11y ago
I am not as pessimistic about lithium as that.
"according to a 2011 study conducted at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the University of California, Berkeley, the currently estimated reserve base of lithium should not be a limiting factor for large-scale battery production for electric vehicles, as the study estimated that on the order of 1 billion 40 kWh Li-based batteries could be built with current reserves. Another 2011 study by researchers from the University of Michigan and Ford Motor Company found sufficient resources to support global demand until 2100, including the lithium required for the potential widespread transportation use. The study estimated global reserves at 39 million tons, and total demand for lithium during the 90-year period analyzed at 12–20 million tons, depending on the scenarios regarding economic growth and recycling rates."[1]
In that time period a lot of the ongoing research in batteries is going to mature and alternative or more effective ways of using materials will happen.
[1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithium#Production https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithium#Production
- ratsbane 11y agoThere are probably a lot more reserves out there that no one's found yet because the current reserves were sufficient for the demand. In the longer term there will be plenty. In the short term, though, existing reserves are mostly in Argentina, Chile, and Bolivia. I wonder how difficult it would be for a cartel to manipulate pricing?