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By George Cavanna
The Lawrenceville School
From whatever device you are reading this from, I want you to wonder how my device is powered right now. Many of you know that magic that powers our devices as batteries. Batteries run the world. From the double A’s that power your video game controller, to your TV remote that allows you to watch all your favorite shows. Whether you're aware or not, the United States is beginning to shift into more electric clean energy products. Because of the new demands for electric cars and the increased use of solar panels around the United States, more battery materials are required. Most modern-day batteries are made of lithium, so it is imperative that we have an abundance of supplies.
Image of Lithium Reserve
Draper, R., & Cédric Gerbehaye. (2019). This metal is powering today’s technology—at what price? Magazine. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/article/lithium-is-fueling-technology-today-at-what-cost
Very recently, a large amount of Lithium was discovered under Arkansas in the Smackover Formation. The Smackover Formation is a large resource of limestone that stretches from the deep south of Texas to the panhandle of Florida (Amgott, 2024). According to the USGA, there is enough lithium to cover the whole lithium imports of the United States. The U.S. always imports lithium from outside countries, notably, Chile and Argentina are big producers of lithium. As a result, lithium is much cheaper and less costly for companies that require it. For example, many car companies use lithium for their batteries to power their cars. According to the New York Times, “Most of the world’s lithium is produced in Australia and South America. A large majority of it is then processed in China, which also dominates the manufacturing of electric vehicle batteries”(Elliot and Penn, 2024). This illustrates the importance of lithium for the U.S.
Now, with this new discovery, American-based car companies could buy lithium cheaper and may invest more in their electric cars. In other words, more companies would be likely to start producing electric cars if they have not already. There is an estimated 5 to 19 million tons of lithium below Arkansas (Amgott, 2024). Every time a car company would need lithium, they would have to pay import tariffs, and therefore, their electric cars would become more expensive. According to USGS, “if commercially recoverable, the amount of lithium present would meet projected 2030 world demand for lithium in car batteries nine times over”(Amgott, 2024). Again, this illustrates how much cheaper lithium will be.
Image of Tesla electric vehicle charging
Ewing, J. (2024, July 9). Tesla’s Share of U.S. Electric Car Market Falls Below 50%. Nytimes.com; The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/09/business/tesla-electric-vehicles-market-share.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare&sgrp=c-cb
With this reduced cost, companies such as Tesla and Rivian, who dominate the market, can make more affordable cars and reach a poorer market. This could also allow these companies to make their cars more accessible on an international scale. Places with more poverty, such as India or Africa, could have access to electric cars. In India, out of 4.2 million passenger vehicles sold last year, less than 2.5% were EVs, according to Bain & Company (Jacob, 2024). In other words, India significantly lacks electric cars. This may be because of price as well. A popular SUV, Tata Punch, goes for around 612,000 Rupees (7,300 USD). A Punch EV, which is an electric SUV, goes for around 1 million rupees (Around 12,000 USD) (Tata, 2024). Electric cars in India are much more expensive than regular gas cars. The new abundance of lithium could allow U.S. companies to create cheaper vehicles for international markets.
Overall, car companies in the USA will be able to grow the market because of lithium reserves. This large trove is not just great news for the USA but for many countries that do not have electric vehicles as well, heralding a new era of cleaner transportation for everyone.
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Amgott, S. (n.d.). Unlocking Arkansas' Hidden Treasure: USGS uses Machine Learning to Show Large Lithium Potential in Smackover Formation. National News Release. USGS. https://www.usgs.gov/news/national-news-release/unlocking-arkansas-hidden-treasure-usgs-uses-machine-learning-show-large
Jacob, C. (2024, September 13). India's EV conundrum: To invest in cars or charging points first. CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2024/09/13/indias-ev-conundrum-to-invest-in-cars-or-charging-points-first.html
Punch.ev. 2024- Explore Tata ev price, features, specifications, colors & more (n.d.). Retrieved November 10, 2024, from https://ev.tatamotors.com/punch/ev.html
Tata punch suv 2024—Explore Tata Punch price, features, specifications, colors & more. (n.d.). Retrieved November 10, 2024, from https://cars.tatamotors.com/punch/ice.html
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