RE:RE:RE:RE:RE:RE:RE:Tesla already eliminating cobalt from its batteries "much of cobalt is found in one place, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, or DRC—with 59 percent of the world's supply sourced from that country. Among many concerns, there's evidence of widespread use of child labor, and last year tech companies were sued for their
alleged role in the death and injury of children. Then there’s the harsh economics: Cobalt is also one of the most expensive metals in EV batteries, costing between $33,000 and $35,000 per tonne. And we simply may not have enough supply. Research from MIT suggests there's not enough ability to mine and process the material to meet demand. The research suggests that demand could reach 430,000 tonnes in the next decade, which is 1.6 times today's capacity.
One solution could be finding an alternative to cobalt in EV batteries. One major Chinese manufacturer, Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL), already produces batteries that use phosphate instead of nickel-cobalt-aluminum or nickel-manganese-cobalt combinations. That's attracted the attention of Tesla, with reports suggesting the company is seeking to add lithium iron phosphate batteries to its options.
Back in 2018, Tesla CEO Elon Musk pledged that his company would stop using cobalt in the next generation of batteries, but the deal in China is likely for shorter-range cars, as phosphate batteries don't have the same capacity as cobalt ones. We're going to need better batteries, or fix cobalt, if EV sales are going to continue to soar."