Whether future demand for lithium includes less than 1% of the new cars sold in the US, as is true today, or near 100%, is in large part a function of the price

Whether future demand for lithium includes less than 1% of the new cars sold in the US, as is true today, or near 100%, is in large part a function of the price of lithium. Most car buyers would probably love to have an 85kwh battery pack like Tesla sells in the Model S, but are only willing to pay a fraction of what Tesla is currently charging (no pun intended). But if an electric Toyota Camry equivalent with an 85 kwh battery pack were available that had a lifetime cost equal to a gasoline Camry, we'd probably see little demand for the gasoline version.