Manufacturers seek alternatives to China’s dominance in fast-growing electric vehicle market
email rounding up the latestFor much of the past century, a small corner of North Carolina supplied the vast majority of the world’s lithium before cheaper competition from abroad took away its crown.
Biden has thrown the weight of the government behind the buildout of the US battery supply chain as he looks to achieve a triple goal of combating climate change, boosting manufacturing jobs and reducing reliance on China, which dominates the market.Inflation Reduction Act “Whereas people were considering domestic manufacturing for a variety of reasons before, the credits now make it a potentially more attractive place than any other,” said Sarah Morgan, co-head of the M&A and capital markets practice at law firm Vinson and Elkins.
“The time has come for the US,” Solvay chief executive Ilham Kadri told the Financial Times. She added that the US has been far more aggressive than Europe in supporting a local battery supply chain. “Geopolitically, the difference is they support manufacturing and localising it.” “By undercutting US manufacturers with their unfair subsidies and trade practices, China seized a significant portion of the market,” Biden said last month. “Today, we’re stepping up to take it back [with] bold goals and actions to make sure we’re back in the game in a big way.”
Socrates Economou, head of nickel and cobalt trading at Trafigura, said that the $7.5bn of funding in the Inflation Reduction Act for tax credits, equivalent to 1mn EVs at the full subsidy of $7,500 a car, sends a powerful message to auto companies and their suppliers — but any tangible impact would take time.