China's hold on the lithium-ion battery supply chain: Prospects for competitive growth and sovereign control
Battery production for electric vehicles (EVs) necessitates a supply chain capable of supporting the exploitation of a variety of raw materials. Lithium, nickel, manganese, and cobalt are of particular significance for the dominant lithium-ion battery (LIB) technology, primarily relying on lithium i...
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Elsevier
2025-04-01
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| Series: | Journal of Power Sources Advances |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666248525000071 |
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| author | Tim Greitemeier Achim Kampker Jens Tübke Simon Lux |
| author_facet | Tim Greitemeier Achim Kampker Jens Tübke Simon Lux |
| author_sort | Tim Greitemeier |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Battery production for electric vehicles (EVs) necessitates a supply chain capable of supporting the exploitation of a variety of raw materials. Lithium, nickel, manganese, and cobalt are of particular significance for the dominant lithium-ion battery (LIB) technology, primarily relying on lithium iron phosphate (LFP) and lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC) cathodes. Geographically, the global supply is heavily reliant on China with competition expected to intensify. In light of this, the questions of how global competition manifests at the company level and whether regions capture their share of the supply chain through domestic companies remain unanswered. These are addressed by analyzing the companies behind each supply chain sector and the respective raw materials. The results demonstrate that China, Europe, and the United States of America (USA) exhibit the most pronounced ownership across the supply chain, acquiring the largest foreign shares in the mining sector. Overall, China leads in a total of eleven out of the 12 investigated sectors, with its peak for LFP production at above 98 %. This preeminence, coupled with the substantial output of South Korea, Europe, and Japan in NMC production, the latter represents a viable target for mitigating supply chain vulnerabilities and attaining greater growth and sovereignty. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-2bb51d5f0b1a4cd3be3d845cc273178f |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2666-2485 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Power Sources Advances |
| spelling | doaj-art-2bb51d5f0b1a4cd3be3d845cc273178f2025-08-20T02:55:54ZengElsevierJournal of Power Sources Advances2666-24852025-04-013210017310.1016/j.powera.2025.100173China's hold on the lithium-ion battery supply chain: Prospects for competitive growth and sovereign controlTim Greitemeier0Achim Kampker1Jens Tübke2Simon Lux3University of Münster, Institute of Business Administration at the Department of Chemistry and Pharmacy, Leonardo Campus 1, 48148, Münster, Germany; Corresponding author.Fraunhofer Research Institution for Battery Cell Production (FFB), Bergiusstrasse 8, 48165, Münster, Germany; RWTH Aachen, Production Engineering of E-Mobility Components (PEM), Bohr 12, 52072, Aachen, GermanyFraunhofer Research Institution for Battery Cell Production (FFB), Bergiusstrasse 8, 48165, Münster, Germany; Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Institute of Mechanical Process Engineering and Mechanics (MVM), Kaiserstraße 12, 76131, Karlsruhe, Germany; Fraunhofer Institute for Chemical Technology ICT, Joseph-von-Fraunhofer Str. 7, 76327, Pfinztal, GermanyUniversity of Münster, Institute of Business Administration at the Department of Chemistry and Pharmacy, Leonardo Campus 1, 48148, Münster, Germany; Fraunhofer Research Institution for Battery Cell Production (FFB), Bergiusstrasse 8, 48165, Münster, GermanyBattery production for electric vehicles (EVs) necessitates a supply chain capable of supporting the exploitation of a variety of raw materials. Lithium, nickel, manganese, and cobalt are of particular significance for the dominant lithium-ion battery (LIB) technology, primarily relying on lithium iron phosphate (LFP) and lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC) cathodes. Geographically, the global supply is heavily reliant on China with competition expected to intensify. In light of this, the questions of how global competition manifests at the company level and whether regions capture their share of the supply chain through domestic companies remain unanswered. These are addressed by analyzing the companies behind each supply chain sector and the respective raw materials. The results demonstrate that China, Europe, and the United States of America (USA) exhibit the most pronounced ownership across the supply chain, acquiring the largest foreign shares in the mining sector. Overall, China leads in a total of eleven out of the 12 investigated sectors, with its peak for LFP production at above 98 %. This preeminence, coupled with the substantial output of South Korea, Europe, and Japan in NMC production, the latter represents a viable target for mitigating supply chain vulnerabilities and attaining greater growth and sovereignty.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666248525000071Global supply chainLithium-ion batteryCritical raw materialsElectric vehicles |
| spellingShingle | Tim Greitemeier Achim Kampker Jens Tübke Simon Lux China's hold on the lithium-ion battery supply chain: Prospects for competitive growth and sovereign control Journal of Power Sources Advances Global supply chain Lithium-ion battery Critical raw materials Electric vehicles |
| title | China's hold on the lithium-ion battery supply chain: Prospects for competitive growth and sovereign control |
| title_full | China's hold on the lithium-ion battery supply chain: Prospects for competitive growth and sovereign control |
| title_fullStr | China's hold on the lithium-ion battery supply chain: Prospects for competitive growth and sovereign control |
| title_full_unstemmed | China's hold on the lithium-ion battery supply chain: Prospects for competitive growth and sovereign control |
| title_short | China's hold on the lithium-ion battery supply chain: Prospects for competitive growth and sovereign control |
| title_sort | china s hold on the lithium ion battery supply chain prospects for competitive growth and sovereign control |
| topic | Global supply chain Lithium-ion battery Critical raw materials Electric vehicles |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666248525000071 |
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