The demand for Lithium has increased a lot in the last few years. Recently, a large quarrying company in Zimbabwe has made an agreement that it will export a mineral named Spodumene containing lithium to China next year. For this, the Chinese company faced stiff competition. The question is why are Chinese companies after Lithium and why are they facing so much competition for it. The main reason for this is the use of lithium batteries, whose increasing demand has made lithium so valuable.
Importance of lithium
How much importance is being given to lithium in the world, it can be understood that one of the reasons for the space competition taking place on the moon is also being considered there. Apart from this, many experts also consider the reserves of lithium in Ukraine as one of the reasons behind the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Whereas Lithium is not very abundant in the world.
Demand for electric vehicles
Actually, now the demand for lithium is not only for mobile and laptop batteries. Just as in the last few years, and especially after the Russia-Ukraine war, the need to end dependence on fossil fuels has intensified. In such a situation, electric vehicles are being seen as the vehicles of the future and the demand is also increasing to make efforts to increase this fast now.
Lithium reserves also in Zimbabwe
Electric vehicle batteries also contain lithium. In this context, the demand for lithium is bound to increase. Due to the availability of lithium, the demand for quarrying has also increased in Zimbabwe mines where there are huge deposits of lithium. It is worth noting that according to Statia.com, Zimbabwe is the country with the largest lithium reserves in the world after Chile, Australia, Argentina, China and the US.
Chinese company wins over many investors
Zulu Lithium Mines, a subsidiary of Premier African Minerals, has selected Xuzhou TA&A Ultraclean Technology Company from a number of Chinese, European, and Australian investors, according to the company’s chief executive, George Roach. At one point, Roach himself was involved in conversations with people from 11 different companies who wanted to be involved in this work.
The supply chain of lithium batteries
Xuzhou has agreed to invest $35 million in the construction of a pilot plant at the Zulu mine. With this, about 50 thousand tonnes of lithium stones will be produced every year from this mine. With this investment, the company will get an opportunity for vertical integration in its lithium battery supply chain.
Another company
Xuzhou is also a supplier of spudamine concentrate, as well as a joint owner of China’s leading lithium producer Yibin Tianyi with CATS. CATL is a Chinese battery manufacturer that produces more than 30 percent of the world’s lithium-ion batteries. Similarly, China’s Zhejiang Huayu Cobalt announced a plan to invest $ 300 million in the mining of lithium near Zimbabwe’s capital Harare last month.
The growing potential for the use of lithium batteries in electric vehicles has influenced the market for both lithium and electric vehicles. While earlier electric vehicle manufacturers focused on nickel-manganese cobalt (NMC) batteries, lithium iron phosphate (LFP) is now gaining in popularity. In such a situation, China’s eyes are on the Lithium market. But China itself has huge reserves of lithium, so it seems that it seems to be intent on following the US oil production policy. Own sources to be saved for the future!
