Welcome to all of the new followers and subscribers. I am happy that you are here!
As I reflect on the past couple years the battery industry has undergone quite a transformation (or is at least trying to keep up)! Each day we are peppered with more news articles pertaining to factory plans, material shortages, and logistics hiccups. The good news - strong interest in scaling the battery industry. The bad - the renewables transition will take time and these challenges are cascading down to the consumer via increased costs. We see it in every aspect of life.
A year ago I summarized my thoughts including the broad assumption that efficiencies and manufacturing improvements should help drive down the cost of lithium ion batteries. Not the case..
Bloomberg NEF (BNEF) released it’s report in November of 2021 on average lithium ion cell and pack prices in $/kWh. It looked promising for 2022 to be another year of cost declines.
But with the recent spikes in commodity prices, the battery industry is also feeling the bite. I think it is fair to say that with roughly 30+% increases in crude oil, natural gas, and battery metals that the cell cost for 2022 is likely to creep up.
TWO!
Two years of writing is a little more special, because sharing my passion has introduced me to a larger network of people. More followers and impressions is a sign that the battery industry is growing. In late 2021, I received a surprise message from a newsletter that I admire and made connections with some great people! Earlier this year I made my first independent contribution to Intercalation where I dissected a research paper on sodium ion batteries (below). It is an outlet where you can find all sorts of information pertaining to lithium ion batteries in an easy to digest format.
The Key Going Forward | Focus |
Why focus? There’s a lot of news out there, and battery research takes time! With the constant news flow of pricing and supply chain challenges it can be challenging to focus on the science and engineering required for making improvements and advancements. Sound research and innovation in a timely manner is the driver for helping the industry navigate the prolonged supply challenges. It is no longer as simple as doing price estimations based on downward trendlines and Moore’s law assumptions. Industry and academics are moving quickly - our global leaders have a hand in this too. The limiting factor is being able to produce enough lithium and related metals for making batteries.
Things are moving fast. We need coordination and open communication to help with the adoption of more batteries.
Acknowledgements
I would especially like to thank all of the staff and researchers that contribute to providing scientific articles and . Some of my favorites include ACS publications, Elsevier, The Electrochemical Society (ECS), Nature Energy, and the many more.
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