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Mid-Nickel",103.5,99.73,3.78,13.78,6.78,[518,519,520,522,524,526,528,530,532,534,536,538],{"date":213,"value":512},{"date":216,"value":513},{"date":219,"value":521},99.19,{"date":222,"value":523},96.02,{"date":225,"value":525},98.23,{"date":467,"value":527},99.24,{"date":329,"value":529},101.29,{"date":339,"value":531},87.61,{"date":341,"value":533},92.44,{"date":344,"value":535},90.96,{"date":347,"value":537},92.24,{"date":350,"value":539},95.09,{"id":541,"uuid":542,"name":543,"slug":544,"full_slug":545,"content":546,"relatedArticles":857,"relatedVideos":858},112470628030476,"6d875621-8f39-4e42-9325-78c5591f4125","Europe’s looming battery anode shortage","europes-looming-battery-anode-shortage","article/europes-looming-battery-anode-shortage",{"_uid":547,"date":548,"tags":549,"editor":553,"content":563,"excerpt":840,"featured":51,"reporter":841,"_editable":845,"component":846,"seo_title":543,"categories":847,"visibility":850,"author_company":49,"featured_image":851,"seo_description":840,"author_full_name":49,"author_job_title":49,"formattedDate":855,"formattedArticleDate":856},"0b04a5b2-963b-4b29-95d6-6dcb46336206","2023-10-13 00:00",[550],{"slug":551,"name":552},"talga","Talga",[554],{"slug":555,"name":556,"content":557},"matthew-bird","Matthew Bird",{"job_title":558,"image":559,"bio":561,"linkedin":562},"Senior Editor - Supply Chains & Data Visualisation",{"filename":560},"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":564,"content":565},"doc",[566,573,578,593,598,603,608,613,618,627,634,639,644,653,658,663,668,675,680,693,698,703,708,713,718,723,730,735,740,745,750,762,769,774,779,788,795,800,805,810,815,820,825,830,835],{"type":567,"attrs":568,"content":569},"paragraph",{"textAlign":49},[570],{"text":571,"type":572},"In a small clearing in the thick forest outside the small city of Luleå in the north of Sweden, last month the Australian mining group Talga broke ground on Europe’s first plant to produce active anode material (AAM) for lithium-ion batteries.","text",{"type":567,"attrs":574,"content":575},{"textAlign":49},[576],{"text":577,"type":572},"The company hopes to source graphite from a nearby mine a few hours drive away, processing it into battery material using the region’s hydropower. The plant will produce 19,500 tonnes per year of AAM – with the hope to get to over 100,000 tonnes eventually.",{"type":567,"attrs":579,"content":580},{"textAlign":49},[581,583,591],{"text":582,"type":572},"Yet Europe will need around 1 million tonnes a year of AAM a year to meet demand by 2030, according to ",{"text":584,"type":572,"marks":585},"Benchmark’s Forecast",[586],{"type":587,"attrs":588},"link",{"href":589,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":590},"https://www.benchmarkminerals.com/price-assessments/anode/portal/","url",{"text":592,"type":572},". It’s currently on track to supply less than a quarter of that, most of it from Chinese companies investing in Europe.",{"type":567,"attrs":594,"content":595},{"textAlign":49},[596],{"text":597,"type":572},"Without further homegrown capacity – either from Chinese or local companies – European automakers could remain reliant on domestic Chinese production of synthetic and natural graphite AAM, which have a higher carbon footprint than those produced elsewhere.",{"type":567,"attrs":599,"content":600},{"textAlign":49},[601],{"text":602,"type":572},"Already, overcapacity in China and a switch to lower cost feedstock   material has lowered the price of synthetic AAM – making them more attractive for automakers, despite their higher carbon footprint.",{"type":567,"attrs":604,"content":605},{"textAlign":49},[606],{"text":607,"type":572},"“Under the prevailing overcapacity environment, the buyer’s priority is just wanting cheap and available material,” Tony Alderson, an analyst at Benchmark, said. “Downstream and midstream players are really not too concerned about ESG at the moment.”",{"type":567,"attrs":609,"content":610},{"textAlign":49},[611],{"text":612,"type":572},"Talga’s chief executive Mark Thompson calls it a “massive, global dump of synthetic material from China.”",{"type":567,"attrs":614,"content":615},{"textAlign":49},[616],{"text":617,"type":572},"“The reality is that all the cell makers in Europe are currently buying all the Chinese material,” he told Benchmark Source. ",{"type":567,"attrs":619,"content":620},{"textAlign":49},[621],{"type":622,"attrs":623},"image",{"id":49,"alt":624,"src":625,"title":49,"source":49,"copyright":49,"meta_data":626},"","https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/cfced7cfdb/bm-european-anode-demand-and-supply.png",{},{"type":628,"attrs":629,"content":631},"heading",{"level":630,"textAlign":49},4,[632],{"text":633,"type":572},"Falling anode prices",{"type":567,"attrs":635,"content":636},{"textAlign":49},[637],{"text":638,"type":572},"Automakers normally use a blend of synthetic and natural graphite in their anodes, but falling prices for synthetic graphite in China is putting pressure on suppliers of natural graphite. ",{"type":567,"attrs":640,"content":641},{"textAlign":49},[642],{"text":643,"type":572},"Synthetic feedstock material has typically been a more consistent product within China and the AAM can achieve a longer cycle life over natural-based material. Therefore, synthetic AAM has historically held a significant price premium over natural AAM due to these reasons, as well as underlying cost.",{"type":567,"attrs":645,"content":646},{"textAlign":49},[647,649,651],{"text":648,"type":572},"This year that price gap has narrowed, however, due to the increased use of ",{"text":650,"type":572},"higher",{"text":652,"type":572}," sulphur coke feedstock. Prices for low energy synthetic graphite AAM fell to RMB 3,000 a tonne ($411) below its corresponding natural graphite material in September.",{"type":567,"attrs":654,"content":655},{"textAlign":49},[656],{"text":657,"type":572},"Prices for high energy synthetic graphite AAM have fallen by 20% this year, compared to a 13% fall for high energy natural graphite AAM, according to Benchmark. ",{"type":567,"attrs":659,"content":660},{"textAlign":49},[661],{"text":662,"type":572},"At current price levels Chinese producers targeting lower end use markets “are just trying to retain their market share and survive,” according to Alderson.",{"type":567,"attrs":664,"content":665},{"textAlign":49},[666],{"text":667,"type":572},"Earlier this year Australian producer Syrah said it would stop production at its mine in Mozambique due to the low prices for graphite. The Benchmark Graphite Price Index fell by 30% in August compared to a year earlier.",{"type":567,"attrs":669,"content":670},{"textAlign":49},[671],{"type":622,"attrs":672},{"id":49,"alt":624,"src":673,"title":49,"source":49,"copyright":49,"meta_data":674},"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/fbafe7ebb3/bm-natural-vs-synthetic-prices.png",{},{"type":567,"attrs":676,"content":677},{"textAlign":49},[678],{"text":679,"type":572},"The fall in prices could further cement Chinese dominance as it comes just as new projects in the West are looking for financing. China currently produces almost all the world’s synthetic and natural graphite AAM.",{"type":567,"attrs":681,"content":682},{"textAlign":49},[683,685,691],{"text":684,"type":572},"Norwegian synthetic graphite producer Vianode ",{"text":686,"type":572,"marks":687},"told Benchmark Source",[688],{"type":587,"attrs":689},{"href":690,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":590},"https://source.benchmarkminerals.com/article/the-inflation-reduction-act-has-really-shifted-the-whole-battery-industry-towards-north-america-qa-with-vianode-ceo-hans-erik-vatne?mc_cid=da73baeae3&mc_eid=30cdfc306f",{"text":692,"type":572}," that it may consider the US to build its first plant, due to the subsidies available in the Inflation Reduction Act.",{"type":567,"attrs":694,"content":695},{"textAlign":49},[696],{"text":697,"type":572},"Talga has received a 150 million euro ($164 million) loan from the European Investment Bank, and says it has selected a group of banks to provide debt for its anode project.",{"type":567,"attrs":699,"content":700},{"textAlign":49},[701],{"text":702,"type":572},"But Thompson says Europe needs to do more to ensure European domestic supply, or it risks being completely reliant on Chinese synthetic graphite, most of which is produced using coal fired power.",{"type":567,"attrs":704,"content":705},{"textAlign":49},[706],{"text":707,"type":572},"Many new synthetic AAM projects in China are being built in Inner Mongolia, which increases the carbon footprint compared to other areas of China by some 73%, according to Benchmark.",{"type":567,"attrs":709,"content":710},{"textAlign":49},[711],{"text":712,"type":572},"In addition the use of higher sulphur feedstock risks adding to the pollution as the sulphur is “just burnt off” in the process, Thompson says. ",{"type":567,"attrs":714,"content":715},{"textAlign":49},[716],{"text":717,"type":572},"The majority of investment in Europe is going to new battery factories, he says, but not the raw materials to feed them.",{"type":567,"attrs":719,"content":720},{"textAlign":49},[721],{"text":722,"type":572},"“Everyone can plan a battery factory and everyone backs it,” Thompson says, “And I guess they presume that they’re going to just work out the supply chain of the raw materials.”",{"type":567,"attrs":724,"content":725},{"textAlign":49},[726],{"type":622,"attrs":727},{"id":49,"alt":624,"src":728,"title":49,"source":49,"copyright":49,"meta_data":729},"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/f9f9df7b3e/bm-pet-coke-price-12oct-1.png",{},{"type":628,"attrs":731,"content":732},{"level":630,"textAlign":49},[733],{"text":734,"type":572},"Emissions standards",{"type":567,"attrs":736,"content":737},{"textAlign":49},[738],{"text":739,"type":572},"Talga says its process has emissions that are up to 92% lower than Chinese synthetic graphite imported into Europe, due to the use of hydropower for electricity, but also because of the nature of its mined deposit.",{"type":567,"attrs":741,"content":742},{"textAlign":49},[743],{"text":744,"type":572},"The Nunasvaara mine contains a very high proportion of small flake graphite, according to Thompson, that makes them more suitable for battery anodes. “The graphite particles are already battery-size in the ground,” he said.",{"type":567,"attrs":746,"content":747},{"textAlign":49},[748],{"text":749,"type":572},"At a grade of between 20% to 30% at its mine in northern Sweden, less ore needs to be mined to produce graphite concentrate than mines with a lower graphite content ore. The company says it can produce around 19,500 tonnes of anode from 100,000 tonnes of graphite ore.",{"type":567,"attrs":751,"content":752},{"textAlign":49},[753,755,760],{"text":754,"type":572},"“This yield up to ten times compared to your average flake graphite mine,” Thompson said. “That lowers your overall CO",{"text":756,"type":572,"marks":757},"2",[758],{"type":759},"italic",{"text":761,"type":572}," because you’ve produced more anode with less energy and less rock along the way.”",{"type":567,"attrs":763,"content":764},{"textAlign":49},[765],{"type":622,"attrs":766},{"id":49,"alt":624,"src":767,"title":49,"source":49,"copyright":49,"meta_data":768},"https://wp-admin.benchmarkminerals.com/app/uploads/Talga-123-1024x683.jpg",{},{"type":567,"attrs":770,"content":771},{"textAlign":49},[772],{"text":773,"type":572},"Talga, Produktionsanläggning, Luleå, Swerim. 220330",{"type":567,"attrs":775,"content":776},{"textAlign":49},[777],{"text":778,"type":572},"In addition, Talga says it uses an alkaline-based purification technique, with significantly less hydrofluoric acid than is used in China. It also has cut the number of processing steps and increased the anode yields over traditional Chinese manufacturing, it says. ",{"type":567,"attrs":780,"content":781},{"textAlign":49},[782,784,786],{"text":783,"type":572},"The current cost contribution of natural AAM to a battery cell can be as low as 5% according to Benchmark. If Western producers are able to produce a qualified product at scale and maintain the same margins, then it should be an easy win to convince automakers to pay marginally more for a much enhanced ESG ",{"text":785,"type":572},"product",{"text":787,"type":572},".",{"type":567,"attrs":789,"content":790},{"textAlign":49},[791],{"type":622,"attrs":792},{"id":49,"alt":624,"src":793,"title":49,"source":49,"copyright":49,"meta_data":794},"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/01e40294e9/bm-anode-supply-and-demand-global.png",{},{"type":628,"attrs":796,"content":797},{"level":630,"textAlign":49},[798],{"text":799,"type":572},"Mine decision heads to Supreme Court ",{"type":567,"attrs":801,"content":802},{"textAlign":49},[803],{"text":804,"type":572},"Talga’s anode plant has been especially designed to process the material from the mine, which will be trucked to the site, with one truck leaving every 12 hours.",{"type":567,"attrs":806,"content":807},{"textAlign":49},[808],{"text":809,"type":572},"Yet the mine lies on the site of winter grazing land of the indigenous Sámi people, who bring their reindeer down from the mountains in the winter months.",{"type":567,"attrs":811,"content":812},{"textAlign":49},[813],{"text":814,"type":572},"Talga has agreed that it will only operate its mine for six months during the summer. It also eventually wants to mine underground, to further decrease the environmental impact.",{"type":567,"attrs":816,"content":817},{"textAlign":49},[818],{"text":819,"type":572},"Still, Thompson says while the mine will operate for six months the mill will keep going all year around, processing stockpiled material. That will enable it to maintain continuous production.",{"type":567,"attrs":821,"content":822},{"textAlign":49},[823],{"text":824,"type":572},"The Sámi villages appealed against the mine’s permit from the Swedish Land and Environment Court earlier this year. While this appeal was rejected by an appeals court, the case has been forwarded to the country’s Supreme Court, who will now decide whether to hear the case.",{"type":567,"attrs":826,"content":827},{"textAlign":49},[828],{"text":829,"type":572},"Until the appeals process is completed the granted environment permit is not yet “in force” and can therefore not be acted on, according to Talga. ",{"type":567,"attrs":831,"content":832},{"textAlign":49},[833],{"text":834,"type":572},"That could be a test of the European Union’s commitment to meeting more of its own mineral demand from within its borders. The EU’s Critical Raw Materials Act promises to “reduce the administrative burden and simplify permitting procedures for critical raw materials projects in the EU.”",{"type":567,"attrs":836,"content":837},{"textAlign":49},[838],{"text":839,"type":572},"“If they [automakers] don’t commit something local than when they want a choice of something else, or they want to lower their CO2, they can’t do it,” Thompson says. “Our resources are here. And that should just be recognised and supported.”","In a small clearing in the thick forest outside the small city of Luleå in the north of Sweden, last month the Australian mining group Talga broke ground on Europe’s first plant to produce active anode material (AAM) for lithium-ion batteries. The company hopes to source graphite from a nearby mine a few hours drive […]",[842],{"slug":555,"name":556,"content":843},{"job_title":558,"image":844,"bio":561,"linkedin":562},{"filename":560},"\u003C!--#storyblok#{\"name\": \"article\", \"space\": \"\", \"uid\": \"0b04a5b2-963b-4b29-95d6-6dcb46336206\", \"id\": \"\"}-->","article",[848],{"slug":849,"name":261},"anode","private",{"id":49,"alt":624,"name":624,"focus":624,"title":624,"source":624,"filename":852,"copyright":624,"fieldtype":853,"meta_data":854,"is_external_url":51},"https://wp-admin.benchmarkminerals.com/app/uploads/Talga-1-1-scaled.jpg","asset",{"alt":624,"title":624,"source":624,"copyright":624},"Oct 13, 2023","13th October 2023",[],[],1781530293513]