The International Atomic Energy projects, in a report issued today, that the demand for critical minerals such as lithium, copper, cobalt, and rare earth elements could expand by as much as six times over current production levels, due to the demand for green technologies, such as electric cars which require much more minerals than do gasoline-powered cars. “Today, the data shows a looming mismatch between the world’s strengthened climate ambitions and the availability of critical minerals that are essential to realizing those climate ambitions,” said Fatih Birol, the IEA’s executive director, in a statement, reported the Washington Examiner.
Another problem is that China dominates the production of rare earths and other critical minerals, accounting for 60% of global production of rare earth elements in 2019, as well as 50% to 70% of the refining capacity for lithium and cobalt and nearly 90% of the refining capacity for rare earth elements, according to the IEA report.
