Lithium supplies getting tight, says S&P Global Platts

The world's supply of lithium, used for lithium-ion batteries, will fall short by 2030, according to an analysis by commodities and energy-related materials market tracker S&P Global Platts Monday.

Global demand for lithium will increase from 500,000 tons in 2021 to 2 million tons in 2030 as global carmakers produce more electric vehicles (EVs), the report said.

It forecast that sales of EVs will reach 9 million units this year, 40 percent more than last year. That figure will jump to 27 million units in 2030.

Imbalances in supply and demand have pushed up the price of lithium carbonate by 511 percent during the past year from $9,000 per ton in Feb. 2020 to $55,000 per ton this year as of Feb. 9.

Prices for lithium hydroxide, another type of lithium, have risen by 380 percent during the same period.

BY JIN EUN-SOO [jin.eunsoo@joongang.co.kr]