The EU and US need graphite for the energy transition. States around the world need it as well, meaning that demand will increase significantly but, globally, we don’t have the supply to match it. This means global shortages or, worse, a delayed energy transition.
China has a monopoly over both synthetic and natural graphite. China can restrict exports either for geopolitical reasons or in an effort to become climate neutral. This makes geopolitical competition to secure supplies of graphite inevitable.
However, current production processes in China are energy intensive, environmentally harmful and expensive. Using such raw material for clean energy technologies is problematic from an environmental, social, governance standpoint.
Find our more in the new HCSS report: Graphite: Supply chain challenges & recommendations for a critical mineral
Key findings:
- Principal idea: we can become less dependent on China by building new supply chains based on much cleaner processes that align with environmental standards and that are acceptable in Europe.
- Governments in US and EU need to do two things for this to happen:
- Work together with Europe, America and Africa to share knowledge resources and capital. In Europe, natural graphite is found in Ukraine and Norway and so graphite supply chains may be impacted by the Ukraine crisis.
- Allow for a healthy ecosystem for junior companies to expand (i.e. make it easier to get funding, encourage innovation, remove public resistance to mining in Europe).
Watch the report explainer video:
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