Datastream
Electric Vehicles Drive up Metals Demand
The Briefing
- Electric vehicle sales were down 25% at the start of the pandemic but demand is bouncing back
- Demand growth from the EV industry is expected to increase as much as 14x by 2030 for certain key metals used in EV production
Electric Vehicles Drive up Metals Demand
Electric vehicle (EV) sales were abruptly interrupted in 2020 due to COVID-19.
However, the consumer base for these cars isn’t going away any time soon. EVs are becoming increasingly popular thanks to higher environmental awareness, falling costs, and ever-improving infrastructure.
Demand for Metals on the Rise
Demand from the EV industry for key metals is on a swift upward trajectory.
Copper, nickel, and lithium are some of the key metals required for EV battery production. As a result, demand growth for nickel from EVs is expected to increase 14 times between 2019-2030. Lithium and copper are expected to experience a growth in demand of 9-10x.
| Metal | Expected Demand Growth Increase to 2030 in the EV Industry |
|---|---|
| Nickel | 14x |
| Aluminum | 14x |
| Phosphorus | 13x |
| Iron | 13x |
| Copper | 10x |
| Graphite | 10x |
| Lithium | 9x |
| Cobalt | 3x |
| Manganese | 3x |
Many of these raw materials come from low to lower middle-income countries and are essential to their economies. For example, around 50% of the world’s cobalt, another key material for EV manufacturing, is found in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Investors and mining companies stand to gain from this increased demand for EVs.
What’s Driving Demand?
As consumer awareness increases around climate change and demand shifts away from the oil and gas industry, the demand for EVs grows immensely. According to some estimates, EVs are expected to make up over half of all passenger vehicle sales by 2040.
Additionally, many governments have committed to the production of EVs in a bid to decrease their dependency on fossil fuels. China, for example, has a goal of having EVs make up 20% of new car sales by 2025.
Tesla is leading the momentum among manufacturers and investors clearly see the opportunity, having driven up Tesla’s shares by over 1,000% since March 2020. But there are other up-and-coming players in the EV market like NIO in China, as well as traditional car makers that are shifting their focus to EVs.
Where does this data come from?
Source: Bloomberg NEF
Datastream
Charted: The Ukraine War Civilian Death Toll
Using data from the UN, this chart shows civilian death toll figures resulting from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The Briefing
- In total, since the war began in February there have been over 7,031 Ukrainian civilian deaths
- Most of the civilian casualties recorded were caused by the use of explosive weapons, such as missiles and heavy artillery
Charted: The Ukraine War Civilian Death Toll
Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine has wrought suffering and death on a mass scale, with many Russian attacks targeted at civilians.
We’ve created this visual using data from the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) to better understand how many civilians have died in Ukraine as a result of the war, as well as how many were injured and how many were children.
The Numbers
As of early December, it is reported that 7,031 people in Ukraine have died because of the war — 433 of them children. Another 11,327 have been injured, 827 of which are children. In total, this is over 18,000 people killed or injured.
The figures are difficult to verify due to differing reports coming out of both Russia and Ukraine. The UN OHCHR anticipates that the numbers could be even higher.
The State of the Conflict
The war began on February 24th, 2022 and less than a year in, millions of people have been displaced by the conflict, and thousands of civilians have been injured or killed.
According to the UN, most of the civilian deaths have been caused by wide-ranging explosives such as heavy artillery shelling, missiles, and air strikes, and have been concentrated in Donetsk and Luhansk and in other territory still held by Ukraine.
Additionally, new estimates from Kyiv report approximately 13,000 Ukrainian military or soldier deaths, which has yet to be confirmed by the army.
Where does this data come from?
Source: The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights monthly reports on civilian deaths in Ukraine.
Note: Data on deaths and injuries can vary wildly depending on the source.
-
Technology2 days agoInfographic: Generative AI Explained by AI
-
VC+2 weeks agoAccess Our Exclusive Report and Upcoming ‘2023 Global Forecast’ Webinar on VC+
-
Markets19 hours agoMapped: GDP Growth Forecasts by Country, in 2023
-
Money4 weeks agoRanked: The World’s Wealthiest Cities, by Number of Millionaires
-
Markets2 weeks agoCharted: The Dipping Cost of Shipping
-
Technology4 weeks agoTimeline: The Most Important Science Headlines of 2022
-
Technology1 week agoRanked: The Top 50 Most Visited Websites in the World
-
Money4 weeks agoVisualizing $65 Trillion in Hidden Dollar Debt