Adamas Intelligence: Amount of nickel in average EV battery up 8% year-over-year

Nickel weighting in BEV batteries jumped 8% year on year to average 25.3 kilograms in July as carmakers continue to opt for high-nickel batteries for long-range, performance and even many entry-level new models, according to Adamas Intelligence.

Most of the nickel mined around the world still ends up as stainless steel and soft demand from the construction and manufacturing sector on the Chinese market has seen prices drop precipitously in 2023.

A rapid production ramp up in Indonesia (already responsible for half of global nickel output) only adds to current weak fundamentals, and low level chaos on the London Metal Exchange after a short squeeze and allegations of warehouse fraud have made the situation even worse, Adamas said.

Prices for nickel cathode (minimum 99.96% Ni ex-works China) have been on a steady decline and are now down 33% year-to-date, dropping below $22,000 a tonne for the first time in 2023 last week, according to Asian Metal. Nickel sulfate prices (minimum 22% Ni delivered China) have fared slightly better but are still down 18% year-to-date.

Nickel bulls looking for good news have turned their attention to the electric car market where the use of lithium-ion batteries (and specifically those with nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) and nickel-cobalt-aluminum (NCA) cathodes) continues to expand.

The Adamas Intelligence EV Battery Capacity and Battery Metals Tracker shows average nickel weighting in EV batteries, including plug-in and conventional hybrids, was up 8% in July 2023 versus the same month the year prior, reaching just over 15 kilograms per vehicle sold.

For plug-in hybrids (PHEVs), average nickel use was up 11% year-over-year to 6.5 kilograms per vehicle in reflection of the many automakers releasing PHEVs with beefed up batteries (earlier post), some sporting a combined ICE-EV range in excess of 1,000 kilometers. Automakers are also upping nickel loads in conventional hybrids (up 6% year-over-year in July).

By nickel tonnes consumed in EV batteries, full electric vehicles (BEVs) currently drive 83% of the global market. In July of this year, the average BEV sold globally contained 25.3 kilograms of nickel in its battery, 8% more than the same month the year prior as carmakers continue to use nickel-rich batteries in new models.

Among nickeliferous cathode options, NCM 8-Series has led the pack globally in 2023, powering 20% of all GWhs deployed onto roads worldwide through the first seven months of the year. NCM 5-Series cells followed closely behind, capturing 19% of the market by GWh deployed. In third place, Tesla-Panasonic’s 3rd Generation NCA cells trailed at a distance with 10% of the market.

cobalt
manganese
batteries
aluminum