US graphite sourcing for electric vehicle battery applications

Abstract

Graphite is a key material in electric vehicle batteries. Currently, China dominates global graphite production, and US sourcing of graphite could mitigate geopolitical supply-chain risk. We explore the feasibility of domestic natural graphite sourcing in North America by characterizing current deposits and modeling the expected demand from 2025 to 2040. The United States has 19 Mt of measured and inferred graphite resources in four deposits, and additional unevaluated resources in several other areas. We estimate that this graphite resource could produce enough natural battery-grade graphite (7.3 Mt) to meet the demand from 2025 to 2040 (1.9 Mt). Issues of concern for domestic sourcing include the fact that the US deposits have a lower average graphite content (2.4%–5.1%) than profitable graphite mines globally, and the timeline for mine development, production, and commercialization might not align with the growth of demand. Additionally, battery-grade synthetic graphite supply, derived from needle coke, might be constrained unless refineries increase production of needle coke or alternate feedstocks are commercialized. Compared to China, US natural graphite production would likely decrease greenhouse gas emissions through lower electricity grid emissions during refining, despite lower ore grades.