EV Battery (Li, Ni, Co, Gr) Mines

An up-to-date list of all the major mines for extracting lithium, nickel, cobalt, manganese, and graphite for making electric vehicle batteries. These minerals and metals are the most critical materials used in making EV batteries. Once the materials are mined, they are sent to battery material refineries for further processing to make battery-grade (BG) materials used to make cathodes and anodes.

For reference, an average Tesla S battery cathode contains 63kg of lithium hydroxide Li₂CO₃, 50kg (80% of the cathode) of nickel, and 7.5kg of cobalt (15% of the cathode). Other cathode metals include aluminum and managanese in lesser amounts. Anodes are made from graphite (carbon), of which there is 70kg-100kg on average.

EV Raw Material Mines in the U.S.

The reshoring and building of a domestic EV lithium battery supply chain is in full swing in the U.S., with a bevy of new lithium, nickel, and cobalt mines coming online by 2025. List is sorted by material.

Largest EV battery material mines worldwide

These are the largest operational mines for extracting lithium, nickel, cobalt, and copper in the world.

kt = thousand tons
Mt = million tons

Largest lithium (Li) mines

Largest nickel (Ni) mines

Largest Cobalt (Co) mines

Largest copper (Cu) mines

There are about 180 lbs of copper in an EV car, which is mainly used in motor windings, HV cables, battery interconnects, and the wiring harness.