Electric Vehicles (EVs)

Electric cars might look like ordinary vehicles on the outside, but underneath the bonnet lies a sophisticated battery system packed with minerals.

• Lithium — the core ingredient of lithium-ion batteries, which store the energy that powers the electric motor.
• Cobalt — used in the battery cathode to improve stability and increase energy storage.
• Nickel — makes batteries hold more charge, giving EVs a longer driving range.
• Graphite — used in the battery anode (the negative side) to hold and release electrical charge.
• Copper — used extensively in wiring, motors, and charging cables due to its excellent electrical conductivity.
• Rare Earth Elements (REEs) — particularly neodymium and dysprosium, used in the powerful permanent magnets inside EV motors.

A single electric car battery can contain around 8 kg of lithium, 35 kg of nickel, 20 kg of manganese, and 14 kg of cobalt. That is a lot of minerals for one vehicle!

Smartphones

Your smartphone is arguably the most mineral-dense object you own. It may be small, but it contains over 60 different elements from the periodic table.

• Lithium — powers the rechargeable battery that keeps your phone on all day.
• Cobalt — stabilises the battery chemistry to prevent overheating.
• Copper — connects circuits on the motherboard and enables fast data transfer.
• Silicon — the foundation of the processor (chip) that runs your apps and operating system.
• Gold — used in tiny connectors inside the phone because it does not corrode or rust.
• Tantalum — found in capacitors (small components that store and release electricity quickly).
• REEs — used in the speaker, vibration motor, and the screen’s colour display.

Laptops

Laptops share many of the same minerals as smartphones but on a slightly larger scale. They also require additional materials for their larger screens and more powerful processors.

• Lithium & Cobalt — for the rechargeable battery pack.
• Silicon — for the main processor (CPU) and graphics chip (GPU).
• Copper & Gold — for circuit board connections and heat transfer.
• Indium — used in the touchscreen display as part of a transparent conductor called indium tin oxide (ITO).
• Rare Earth Elements — used in magnets within the fan that keeps the laptop cool.

Data Centres

Data centres are the giant buildings full of servers that store websites, videos, emails, and every piece of cloud data you have ever saved. They are the backbone of the internet — and they consume huge quantities of minerals.

• Copper — kilometres of copper cabling connect thousands of servers together.
• Silicon — every server processor and memory chip is built on silicon.
• Gold & Tantalum — used in high-grade connectors and capacitors inside server components.
• Lithium & Cobalt — for the enormous battery backup systems that keep data centres running during power cuts.
• REEs — used in the cooling fans and electromagnetic components throughout server racks.

A large hyperscale data centre — like those operated by Google, Microsoft, or Amazon — can contain hundreds of thousands of servers, making the mineral demand enormous.

Mineral Deep Dive

Now let us take a closer look at the most important minerals individually.

Lithium

Lithium is a soft, silvery-white metal — so light that it floats on water. It is the star of the rechargeable battery revolution.

• Why it matters: Lithium-ion batteries are lightweight, hold a large amount of energy, and can be recharged hundreds of times. This makes them ideal for everything from phones to electric cars.
• Top producers: Australia (No. 1 globally), Chile, China.
• Annual output: Approximately 180,000 tonnes (2023 estimate).
• Notable concern: Lithium is often extracted from salt flats (like those in Chile’s Atacama Desert) using a process that consumes vast quantities of fresh water — a serious issue in already dry regions.

Cobalt

Cobalt is a hard, bluish-grey metal that has been used in pigments for centuries. Today, it is critical to battery technology.

• Why it matters: Cobalt stabilises battery chemistry, improves energy density, and reduces the risk of overheating or fire in lithium-ion batteries.
• Top producers: Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) accounts for over 70% of global supply, Russia, Australia.
• Annual output: Approximately 220,000 tonnes.
• Notable concern: More than half of cobalt mining in the DRC involves informal or artisanal mines with poor safety conditions. Reports of child labour in these mines have led to calls for stricter supply chain accountability from technology companies.

Nickel

Nickel is a shiny, silver-coloured metal resistant to corrosion. It plays a growing role in next-generation EV batteries.

• Why it matters: Higher nickel content in batteries (as in NMC and NCA battery chemistries) increases energy density, meaning EVs can travel further on a single charge.
• Top producers: Indonesia, Philippines, Russia.
• Annual output: Approximately 3.3 million tonnes.
• Notable concern: Nickel smelting produces sulphur dioxide emissions. Indonesia’s rapid expansion of nickel mining, often in ecologically sensitive rainforest areas, has raised environmental concerns.

Copper

Copper is one of the oldest metals used by humans — and it remains utterly essential in the digital age. It is reddish-brown, extremely conductive, and found in almost every piece of technology.

• Why it matters: Copper conducts electricity better than almost any other affordable metal. It is used in motors, wiring, circuit boards, cables, and heat exchangers.
• Top producers: Chile, Peru, DR Congo.
• Annual output: Approximately 22 million tonnes — making it one of the most mined metals on earth.
• Notable concern: Demand for copper is expected to double by 2035 due to EVs and renewable energy infrastructure. Existing mines may not be sufficient to meet this demand.

Silicon

Silicon is the second most abundant element in the Earth’s crust — found in ordinary sand. Yet purifying it into ultra-high-purity silicon for electronics is a complex and energy-intensive process.

• Why it matters: Silicon is the foundation of all modern electronics. Every microchip, transistor, and solar panel is built on silicon. The term ‘Silicon Valley’ exists precisely because of its importance to technology.
• Top producers: China (over 60%), Russia, Norway.
• Annual output: Approximately 8 million tonnes of silicon metal.
• Notable concern: China’s dominance in silicon refining creates geopolitical supply chain risks for Western technology manufacturers.

Graphite

Graphite is a form of carbon — yes, the same element as diamonds, just arranged differently. It is dark, slippery, and extremely useful.

• Why it matters: Graphite makes up the anode (negative electrode) of lithium-ion batteries. When a battery charges, lithium ions are stored inside the graphite structure.
• Top producers: China (approximately 79% of global supply), Mozambique, Madagascar.
• Annual output: Approximately 1.3 million tonnes of natural graphite.
• Notable concern: China’s overwhelming dominance in graphite production has led to significant supply chain vulnerability. In late 2023, China announced export restrictions on graphite, alarming EV and battery manufacturers worldwide.

Rare Earth Elements (REEs)

Despite the name, rare earth elements are not actually that rare in the Earth’s crust. They are, however, rarely found in large enough concentrations to mine economically. There are 17 REEs in total, and they include neodymium, dysprosium, lanthanum, and cerium.

• Why they matter: REEs are essential for the permanent magnets used in EV motors, wind turbines, speakers, and hard drives. Without neodymium magnets, modern electric motors would be far less efficient.
• Top producers: China (approximately 70% of global output), USA, Australia.
• Annual output: Approximately 300,000 tonnes of rare earth oxides.
• Notable concern: REE mining generates significant radioactive waste and chemical runoff. China’s near-monopoly on processing (even where ore is mined elsewhere) gives it enormous geopolitical leverage over global technology supply chains.

Global Supply & Extraction Insights