China’s move on Friday to curb exports of graphite, a key electric vehicle battery material, will only accelerate efforts to develop alternative sources and materials, but that will take time, industry executives and analysts said. China, the world’s largest graphite producer and exporter, will require export permits as of December 1 for some graphite products, including spherical graphite used by carmakers. It refines more than 90% of the world’s graphite into the material used in almost all EV battery anodes, which is the negatively charged portion of a battery. China’s decision may escalate trade disputes globally and spur other countries to prioritise research into alternative sources and materials, industry executives said. “We see China’s move as a potential catalyst to highlight the urgency of improving (US) graphite supply,” said John…
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Cape Times (Digital) - 1 Issue, 2023-10-23