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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":661,"relatedVideos":662},112475117460163,"8622e51f-63b8-4cf1-b961-d3c693c93ac1","Fears of lithium  supply shortage  become reality","fears-of-lithium-supply-shortage-become-reality","article/fears-of-lithium-supply-shortage-become-reality",{"_uid":547,"date":548,"tags":549,"editor":550,"content":560,"excerpt":568,"featured":50,"reporter":638,"_editable":642,"component":643,"seo_title":543,"categories":644,"visibility":653,"author_company":49,"featured_image":654,"seo_description":568,"author_full_name":49,"author_job_title":49,"formattedDate":659,"formattedArticleDate":660},"6c2e29d8-f46a-4e05-9a5b-b8aeec852297","2016-07-20 00:00",[],[551],{"slug":552,"name":553,"content":554},"didi-bostock","Didi Bostock",{"job_title":555,"image":556,"bio":558,"linkedin":559},"Editor - Energy Transition & Economics",{"filename":557},"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/512x512/2c5ca5c1a3/didi-bostock.jpeg","Didi is the Energy Transition & Economics Editor at Benchmark, covering a broad range of markets across the energy transition. His remit spans from downstream sectors such as BESS and EVs, through to midstream such as new technologies and battery production, to upstream critical minerals mining. He also leads on financial analysis across these supply chains, alongside in-depth policy analysis.\n","https://www.linkedin.com/in/didi-bostock-656342198/",{"type":561,"content":562},"doc",[563,570,575,580,585,590,595,600,605,610,615,620,625,630,635],{"type":564,"attrs":565,"content":566},"paragraph",{"textAlign":49},[567],{"text":568,"type":569},"Prices of both lithium hydroxide and carbonate rise on the back of strong battery demand in Asia, while major producers talk of expansions plans","text",{"type":564,"attrs":571,"content":572},{"textAlign":49},[573],{"text":574,"type":569},"The lithium industry is at the start of a supply shortage.",{"type":564,"attrs":576,"content":577},{"textAlign":49},[578],{"text":579,"type":569},"Prices of both lithium carbonate and lithium hydroxide have continued to rise in 2015 on the backdrop of no new supply with increased demand.",{"type":564,"attrs":581,"content":582},{"textAlign":49},[583],{"text":584,"type":569},"Rising consumption of lithiumion batteries continues to drive the industry and now accounts for well over one third of all demand.",{"type":564,"attrs":586,"content":587},{"textAlign":49},[588],{"text":589,"type":569},"However, the lack of any new supply is starting to squeeze the industry and force prices upwards.",{"type":564,"attrs":591,"content":592},{"textAlign":49},[593],{"text":594,"type":569},"Benchmark Mineral Intelligence estimates the average lithium carbonate price to be $6,000/ tonne, up 20% on the average in 2014. Meanwhile, US-based lithium consultancy Global Lithium LLC estimates that quoted prices have broken the $7,000/tonne barrier – a 15 year high, exceeding the last major price spike in 2009. It is unclear yet whether these prices have stuck.",{"type":564,"attrs":596,"content":597},{"textAlign":49},[598],{"text":599,"type":569},"The rising trend was publicly backed by Chile-based SQM SA, the world’s largest producer of lithium carbonate by volume.",{"type":564,"attrs":601,"content":602},{"textAlign":49},[603],{"text":604,"type":569},"“[Our] lithium business continues to see strong market growth and average prices during the first quarter were close to 10% higher than prices seen during the fourth quarter of 2014,” explained SQM’s new CEO, Patricio de Solminihac.",{"type":564,"attrs":606,"content":607},{"textAlign":49},[608],{"text":609,"type":569},"The company also shed some light on its thoughts behind the supply squeeze.",{"type":564,"attrs":611,"content":612},{"textAlign":49},[613],{"text":614,"type":569},"“We believe that new projects scheduled to come online in 2015 will supply less [lithium] than originally anticipated this year…[but] we expect to see higher volumes in 2015 compared to 2014,” SQM stated.",{"type":564,"attrs":616,"content":617},{"textAlign":49},[618],{"text":619,"type":569},"One of the new projects the company refers to is Orocobre Ltd’s 15,000 tpa Olaroz lithium carbonate project in Argentina, which was commissioned in Q1 2015 but output from the operation has been slower than the market expected. RB Energy Inc was also anticipated to have been operating its hard rock lithium asset in Quebec, Canada by now but it fell into bankruptcy in May.",{"type":564,"attrs":621,"content":622},{"textAlign":49},[623],{"text":624,"type":569},"Lithium hydroxide prices are also rising due to the same fundamental drivers as carbonate, but have the potential to be more volatile over the coming two years. Benchmark sees prices around the $7,000/tonne mark but with some spot price quotes over $10,000/tonne. The higher prices are yet to stick across the board in hydroxide, but there is no doubt prices are rising.",{"type":564,"attrs":626,"content":627},{"textAlign":49},[628],{"text":629,"type":569},"Global Lithium sees the high price point for lithium hydroxide at just under $10,000/tonne with a midpoint average of just under $8,000/ tonne.",{"type":564,"attrs":631,"content":632},{"textAlign":49},[633],{"text":634,"type":569},"Hydroxide has less capacity than carbonate and therefore less flexibility with the ebb and flow of demand.",{"type":564,"attrs":636,"content":637},{"textAlign":49},[],[639],{"slug":552,"name":553,"content":640},{"job_title":555,"image":641,"bio":558,"linkedin":559},{"filename":557},"\u003C!--#storyblok#{\"name\": \"article\", \"space\": \"\", \"uid\": \"6c2e29d8-f46a-4e05-9a5b-b8aeec852297\", \"id\": \"\"}-->","article",[645,648,651],{"slug":646,"name":647},"batteries","Batteries",{"slug":649,"name":650},"critical-minerals","Critical Minerals",{"slug":652,"name":8},"lithium","private",{"id":49,"alt":655,"name":655,"focus":655,"title":655,"source":655,"filename":656,"copyright":655,"fieldtype":657,"meta_data":658,"is_external_url":51},"","https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/38ad7d3b2b/bm-screen-shot-2016-07-20-at-151247.png","asset",{"alt":655,"title":655,"source":655,"copyright":655},"Jul 20, 2016","20th July 2016",[],[],1780501004031]