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High-Nickel",144.45,149.67,-3.49,26.69,49.06,[498,499,500,502,504,506,508,510,512,514,516,518],{"date":198,"value":492},{"date":200,"value":493},{"date":203,"value":501},157.37,{"date":206,"value":503},160,{"date":209,"value":505},149.53,{"date":212,"value":507},141.97,{"date":215,"value":509},136.99,{"date":218,"value":511},129.81,{"date":221,"value":513},114.02,{"date":224,"value":515},109.17,{"date":227,"value":517},109.02,{"date":255,"value":519},99.44,{"publishedDate":198,"updateFrequency":187,"updateFrequencyText":188,"label":521,"today":522,"last":523,"percentageChange":524,"yearToDate":525,"yearOnYear":526,"oneYearIndexTrend":527,"url":377,"subscription":49,"isProtected":50,"hasAccess":51},"LFP",229.17,218.34,4.96,49.35,83.44,[528,529,530,532,534,536,538,540,542,544,546,548],{"date":198,"value":522},{"date":200,"value":523},{"date":203,"value":531},239.1,{"date":206,"value":533},258.32,{"date":209,"value":535},239.37,{"date":212,"value":537},213.01,{"date":215,"value":539},204.49,{"date":218,"value":541},218.06,{"date":221,"value":543},153.45,{"date":224,"value":545},134.02,{"date":227,"value":547},118.22,{"date":255,"value":549},111.93,{"id":551,"uuid":552,"name":553,"slug":554,"full_slug":555,"content":556,"relatedArticles":695,"relatedVideos":696},112473097207496,"17f73055-d8a8-4941-bbcc-d1127e70ad8e","Electric vehicles drive demand for graphite – 2021 in review","anode-demand-begins-to-impact-graphite-prices-2021-in-review","article/anode-demand-begins-to-impact-graphite-prices-2021-in-review",{"_uid":557,"date":558,"tags":559,"editor":563,"content":573,"excerpt":673,"featured":50,"reporter":674,"_editable":678,"component":679,"seo_title":553,"categories":680,"visibility":687,"author_company":49,"featured_image":688,"seo_description":673,"author_full_name":49,"author_job_title":49,"formattedDate":693,"formattedArticleDate":694},"555ff5af-1b2e-44f9-b3e5-0ecc85ea3d91","2021-12-30 00:00",[560],{"slug":561,"name":562},"graphite-prices","Graphite prices",[564],{"slug":565,"name":566,"content":567},"matthew-bird","Matthew Bird",{"job_title":568,"image":569,"bio":571,"linkedin":572},"Senior Editor - Supply Chains & Data Visualisation",{"filename":570},"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/512x512/14738033ec/matthew-bird.jpeg","Matthew writes, edits and produces content for Benchmark Intelligence and Benchmark Source across the whole mine to grid supply chain. He also acts as a liaison to the press. He has a PhD in electrochemistry from the University of Nottingham.","https://www.linkedin.com/in/birdmatthew/",{"type":574,"content":575},"doc",[576,593,598,603,608,613,618,623,630,635,648,653,658,663,668],{"type":577,"attrs":578,"content":579},"paragraph",{"textAlign":49},[580,583,591],{"text":581,"type":582},"Given the structural oversupply that has existed in the graphite market since the market’s last price cycle in 2017/2018, ","text",{"text":584,"type":582,"marks":585},"flake graphite prices",[586],{"type":587,"attrs":588},"link",{"href":589,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":590},"https://source.benchmarkminerals.com/article/benchmark-minerals-launches-new-flake-graphite-price-assessments-for-domestic-china-grades","url",{"text":592,"type":582}," remained relatively flat during 2021 despite mounting demand from the anode industry, writes Benchmark analyst George Miller.",{"type":577,"attrs":594,"content":595},{"textAlign":49},[596],{"text":597,"type":582},"Another driver behind stable pricing for graphite during 2021 was exceptionally high freight prices. With the majority of flake graphite supply based in China, and the relatively inexpensive nature of flake graphite compared to other critical minerals, shipping makes up a large proportion of costs for end-consumers.",{"type":577,"attrs":599,"content":600},{"textAlign":49},[601],{"text":602,"type":582},"With shipping prices of between $8,000-20,000 per container, adding between $350-900/tonne to the cost of flake graphite on a CIF-basis, consumers in end markets were unwilling to accept raw material price increases whilst they struggled to manage shipping costs, forcing stability in pricing despite rising demand.",{"type":577,"attrs":604,"content":605},{"textAlign":49},[606],{"text":607,"type":582},"This largely stable pricing persisted across all grades until October 2021, during which Benchmark began to record nascent increases in flake graphite pricing on the back of tightening supply within China, as mines and processing operations in Heilongjiang began seasonal closures under cold weather conditions. Moreover, market tightness was reinforced by persistently improving demand from the anode value chain, given record-breaking electric vehicle sales figures globally and robust cell production within China.",{"type":577,"attrs":609,"content":610},{"textAlign":49},[611],{"text":612,"type":582},"Since October 2021, demand has continued to improve, driving prices upwards by an average of 21.1% for all grades of flake concentrate assessed by Benchmark, with Chinese producers undergoing closures forced to fulfil orders from inventory.",{"type":577,"attrs":614,"content":615},{"textAlign":49},[616],{"text":617,"type":582},"Whilst Benchmark anticipates producers to be able to meet demand from stockpiles, given waning demand from Chinese traditional industry on the back of environmental restrictions ahead of the 2022 Winter Olympics, strong demand from ex-Chinese traditional industry and the anode value chain may see flake graphite prices maintain at a higher level into 2022.",{"type":577,"attrs":619,"content":620},{"textAlign":49},[621],{"text":622,"type":582},"This will make it one of the final critical minerals in the lithium-ion value chain to enter a rising price environment since 2020.",{"type":624,"attrs":625,"content":627},"heading",{"level":626,"textAlign":49},4,[628],{"text":629,"type":582},"Rising synthetic graphite feedstock costs hit anode producers",{"type":577,"attrs":631,"content":632},{"textAlign":49},[633],{"text":634,"type":582},"Shifting supply-demand fundamentals have impacted synthetic graphite feedstock prices throughout 2021, writes Benchmark analyst Maynie Yang.",{"type":577,"attrs":636,"content":637},{"textAlign":49},[638,640,646],{"text":639,"type":582},"Currently, ",{"text":641,"type":582,"marks":642},"95% of the world’s synthetic graphite battery anodes are produced in China",[643],{"type":587,"attrs":644},{"href":645,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":590},"https://source.benchmarkminerals.com/article/western-ev-makers-face-up-to-chinas-grip-on-graphite-market",{"text":647,"type":582},". Chinese producers tend to use low-sulphur pet needle coke, pitch needle coke, and pet coke as feedstock, especially the cheaper pre-calcined grades, which are less frequently used for other industrial products. Therefore, low-sulphur coke prices closely follow the demand patterns for synthetic graphite anode.",{"type":577,"attrs":649,"content":650},{"textAlign":49},[651],{"text":652,"type":582},"Anode demand has been strong in 2021, with market participants reporting that Chinese anode producers have received more downstream orders than they could fulfill. DDP China prices for pre-calcined pet needle coke, the dominant anode feedstock, reached up to RMB 8,500/tonne ($1,309) in April. Overall anode coke prices climbed throughout the year, with the Benchmark LiB Anode Coke Price Index up 25.9% y-t-d in November.",{"type":577,"attrs":654,"content":655},{"textAlign":49},[656],{"text":657,"type":582},"Increasing coke production costs also contributed to the price rise. Notably, high coal tar feedstock costs led average pre-calcined pitch needle coke prices to peak at RMB 7,750/tonne ($1,201.3) in June and November respectively, up 72% y-t-d. Upper-end pre-calcined pitch needle coke prices even reached similar levels to pet needle coke prices, which are usually more highly valued due to product consistency.",{"type":577,"attrs":659,"content":660},{"textAlign":49},[661],{"text":662,"type":582},"Despite upward trending coke demand and production costs during 2021, pressure from anode producers to lower their costs moderated the 2021 coke price increase, particularly for the less commonly used pitch needle cokes, forcing many pitch producers to halt production due to low profit margins. Downstream price pressure was exacerbated by a continuous shortage of graphitisation processing capacity from July 2021 onwards.",{"type":577,"attrs":664,"content":665},{"textAlign":49},[666],{"text":667,"type":582},"Consequently, anode producers faced a 60% y-t-d rise in graphitisation processing costs. As graphitisation costs comprise more than 40% of synthetic graphite anode production costs, this pushed anode companies to negotiate for moderate coke prices upstream and higher anode prices downstream.",{"type":577,"attrs":669,"content":670},{"textAlign":49},[671],{"text":672,"type":582},"Since graphitisation capacity remains in deficit towards the end of 2021, anode companies have accumulated unprocessed feedstock inventory, constraining the demand and price outlook for low-sulphur coke in the pre-Chinese New Year purchasing season from 2021-2022.","Given the structural oversupply that has existed in the graphite market since the market’s last price cycle in 2017/2018, flake graphite prices remained relatively flat during 2021 despite mounting demand from the anode industry, writes Benchmark analyst George Miller. Another driver behind stable pricing for graphite during 2021 was exceptionally high freight prices. With the […]",[675],{"slug":565,"name":566,"content":676},{"job_title":568,"image":677,"bio":571,"linkedin":572},{"filename":570},"\u003C!--#storyblok#{\"name\": \"article\", \"space\": \"\", \"uid\": \"555ff5af-1b2e-44f9-b3e5-0ecc85ea3d91\", \"id\": \"\"}-->","article",[681,684],{"slug":682,"name":683},"critical-minerals","Critical Minerals",{"slug":685,"name":686},"graphite","Graphite","private",{"id":49,"alt":689,"name":689,"focus":689,"title":689,"source":689,"filename":690,"copyright":689,"fieldtype":691,"meta_data":692,"is_external_url":51},"","https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/717e0d6d43/bm-shutterstock-19889378001.jpg","asset",{"alt":689,"title":689,"source":689,"copyright":689},"Dec 30, 2021","30th December 2021",[],[],1792773930949]