Battery Upstream Materials

refining · battery-grade · concentration

Mines are spread across Australia, Chile, the DRC and Indonesia. The refineries that turn their output into battery chemicals are mostly in China.

Paired bars for five battery minerals comparing the top mining country with China's share of refining: lithium, Australia about 37% of mining versus China about 74% of refining; cobalt, DRC about 76% versus China about 76%; graphite, China about 79% versus about 94%; manganese, South Africa about 37% versus China about 95% of battery-grade manganese sulfate; nickel, Indonesia about 60% of mining, refined largely in Chinese-owned HPAL plants in Indonesia. TOP MINING COUNTRY VS CHINA SHARE OF REFINING MINING (TOP COUNTRY) REFINING (CHINA) Lithium Australia ~37% ~74% Cobalt DRC ~76% ~76% Graphite China ~79% ~94% Manganese S. Africa ~37% ~95%* Nickel Indonesia ~60% mostly Chinese-owned * battery-grade manganese sulfate. Shares of 2024 output.
Elements
Li, Ni, Co, Mn, graphite
China, graphite refining
~94%
China, lithium refining
~74%
Qualification
Months to years
Hub
Supply Chain

Finding

Refining, not mining, is the chokepoint in the battery chain: mine output is spread across several continents, but conversion to battery-grade chemicals is concentrated in China for every element

Battery plants never buy ore. They buy lithium carbonate or hydroxide, nickel, cobalt and manganese sulfates, coated spherical graphite and LiPF6 - chemicals held to parts-per-million impurity limits and qualified by each cathode and cell maker over months. China refines about 74% of lithium chemicals, about 76% of cobalt and about 94% of battery graphite; Chinese companies also own most of the HPAL plants that made Indonesia the world's nickel source.

Western capacity is small and fragile. Low lithium, nickel and cobalt prices since 2023 closed BHP's Nickel West and Albemarle's Kemerton expansion and stalled Electra's cobalt refinery and Euro Manganese. The US has one new large lithium hydroxide plant, the Tesla lithium refinery in Robstown, Texas, started in December 2024, and depends on imports for battery-grade graphite, manganese sulfate, nickel sulfate and cobalt sulfate. China has added export licensing for graphite and battery technology; the DRC replaced its 2025 cobalt export ban with quotas.

Elements

The five battery elements

Battery elements, their battery-grade forms and where they are refined
ElementBattery-grade formsMain feedstockUsed inRefining leaders
LithiumLi2CO3, LiOH·H2O, LiPF6Spodumene concentrate, brineEvery lithium-ion cathode; electrolyteGanfeng, Tianqi, Yahua (China); Albemarle, SQM, Rio Tinto
NickelNiSO4·6H2O, MHPLaterite (HPAL), sulfide matteNMC, NCAHuayou, GEM, CNGR, Lygend (in Indonesia and China); Sumitomo Metal Mining
CobaltCoSO4·7H2O, Co3O4Cobalt hydroxide from DRC copper mines; MHPNMC, NCAHuayou, GEM, Jinchuan, Hanrui; Jervois Finland, Umicore
ManganeseMnSO4·H2O (HPMSM)Manganese ore, electrolytic manganese metalNMC, LMFP, LMRCITIC Dameng, CNGR, Guizhou producers; Element 25 (planned US)
GraphiteCoated spherical natural graphite, synthetic graphiteFlake graphite; needle cokeNearly every anodeBTR, Shanshan, Putailai, Shinzoom; POSCO Future M, Syrah, Novonix

Battery-grade

What battery-grade means

Industrial-grade chemicals can be high purity and still fail a battery specification.

Battery-grade requirements
RequirementWhy it mattersTypical control
Trace metalsIron, copper, zinc and sodium cause self-discharge, gassing and short circuitsLow-ppm limits per element
MoistureWater reacts with LiPF6 to form hydrofluoric acidTight limits for hydroxide and electrolyte salts
Particle size and shapeControls coating, packing density and first-cycle lossNarrow distribution; spherical graphite
Lot-to-lot consistencyPrecursor co-precipitation and cell yield depend on itStatistical process control
TraceabilityCustomer qualification, IRA and EU Battery Regulation rulesChain-of-custody records; battery passport (EU, from 2027)

Sources

Sources and scope

Scope
Battery Upstream Materials
Sources
IEA Global Critical Minerals Outlook 2025; USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2025; company disclosures
Updated
October 2026