Elon Musk revealed plans for Tesla in the future, and the company might get into Lithium mining due to its rising prices as the process for its refinement and supply is a massive problem. Musk and the clean energy company looked into other battery components before, but it seems that the company prefers the use of Lithium as its main component.
Tesla Lithium Mining: Elon Musk Reveals Company's Possible Venture
The tech CEO may be planning a new venture for Tesla's battery manufacturing, and it is through mining for Lithium sources themselves. The tech billionaire revealed the possibilities of getting into the business and mining for the component first-hand, not waiting for battery manufacturing companies to bring their finished products for the company to use.
There are many possible ventures for Tesla in its battery mining focus, and the company is doing it for Lithium, one of the main components for high-capacity power cells. The company is currently using 18650 Li-On batteries, but with its 4680, the LFP or Lithium Iron Phosphate power cells that bring a more significant energy storage device.
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Price of lithium has gone to insane levels! Tesla might actually have to get into the mining & refining directly at scale, unless costs improve.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 8, 2022
There is no shortage of the element itself, as lithium is almost everywhere on Earth, but pace of extraction/refinement is slow.
Lithium: Battery Component Price Jumped to Insane Levels
Musk said that Lithium is not getting scarce or limited from mines. It is just that its extraction and refinement are slow in the current tech landscape. In addition, another tweet talked about the rise of its prices in the last ten years, showing a massive gap that occurred only a year from 2021 to 2022.
Lithium's price per tonne in 2012 was $4,450, and fast forward to 2021. It stands at $17,000. However, for 2022, its price is now at $78,0032.
Tesla and Its Battery Ventures
Tesla revealed the latest battery venture it had, and it is with the Model Y and the 4680 power cell that aims to deliver a higher capacity, charging rate, and energy delivery. The new battery is what Tesla planned for the Model Y and soon, its other releases for the EV, bringing a massive change to its vehicles with more to offer.
The new 4680 battery will get to focus on its new manufacturing plant that opened this year, and it includes the Gigafactory Berlin for Europe and Gigafactory Texas, which recently launched. The massive manufacturing plants will bring new electric vehicles with the latest battery from the company, but for now, it is for the Model Y only.
Tesla is famous for many ventures for the clean energy vehicle, but it did not focus on sourcing its component first-hand until this recent tweet by the CEO. Tesla may be facing hard times for them to go into the mining business, and it clearly shows in the current landscape.
Despite having battery partners and third-party manufacturers, Tesla may still go into mining for the Lithium component.
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Written by Isaiah Richard
