Lithium prices peaked in 2022 and have been falling ever since. Australian miners say volatile price swings are part of the growing pains of an emerging industry.
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00:00The cost of mining this lithium-rich ore is coming uncomfortably close to the price Australian
00:07miners are selling it for.
00:09Pricing is lower at this time, but we've seen that in the past.
00:14Prices have tumbled from their peak in late 2022 to below 900 US dollars a tonne as a
00:20wave of new lithium mines entered development in China, Africa and South America.
00:26At the same time, demand for electric vehicles has waned.
00:30This is a slowing of growth versus the rapid growth for an electric vehicle demand that
00:35we've had in the last couple of years.
00:36So far, European and American automakers have failed to deliver a mid-sized electric vehicle
00:42at the right cost for consumers, and that's seen many fail to meet sales targets over
00:48the last year.
00:50These are very challenging to make profitably with high margin.
00:53Chinese automakers have been able to sell more affordable EVs, but in Europe, the United
00:59States and Canada, they're now subject to hefty tariffs.
01:03Those trade barriers are part of a wider push to develop battery supply chains outside of
01:08China.
01:09Both North America and Europe are going to become big markets for EV growth.
01:14There are no signs of the wider industry malaise at this mine site in WA's Pilbara.
01:19In fact, plans are afoot to add an extra 50% to capacity in the next 12 months.
01:26Pricing has gone up, it's come down, but the long-term trajectory looks fantastic.
01:31That long-term outlook relies on global mandates to phase out internal combustion engine vehicles
01:37and renewable energy targets.
01:39But with new mines coming online overseas, Aussie miners are set to face even steeper
01:44competition while they wait for prices to rebound.