Introduction

What is this RMIS application?

This RMIS application focuses on raw materials for batteries and their relevance for the sustainable development of battery supply chains for Europe. The first five sections cover the main trends and some key parameters in supply, demand, stocks and flows and reuse, repurposing, remanufacturing. The last section, in the form of an interactive data viewer contains the latest data from research on batteries (all chemistries) and the associated materials that are entering, exiting or in use in the EU territory. These pages focus on the current and future trends of the battery market with a particular focus on the introduction of lithium-ion batteries for e-mobility and its effects on the materials demand and potential recovery. The contents are to be continuously updated as more information on trends on battery primary raw materials and on actual collection and recycling flows becomes available. The data viewer developed for this website is based on the FutuRaM - Stock and Flow and Recovery Data – Batteries dataset.

What are batteries?

Batteries are used in a wide range of applications in our daily life. Batteries are electrochemical cells that store energy in a chemical form and can convert this chemical energy to usable electrical energy when required. For rechargeable (or secondary batteries) this process is reversible by re-charging and reversing the chemical reactions and restore its stored energy.

The materials at the cathode and, sometimes at the anode too, define the battery chemistry. For example, single use (or primary) batteries are based on chemistries such as zinc, mercury, manganese and lithium. For rechargeable batteries, the main chemistries are lead-acid based batteries or nickel-based batteries, of which nickel-cadmium and nickel metal hydride batteries are best known. Mercury batteries and cadmium batteries of general use are forbidden to be placed on the EU market since 2008, following Batteries Directive 2006/66/EC and later the Batteries Regulation (EU 2023/1542). Lithium-based chemistries, originally used mostly in portable electronics, now represent the largest share of the battery market inputs. This growth is driven by the EU's ongoing transition to widespread electrification, particularly in the mobility and energy sectors.

As for the structure, battery cells are clustered in modules containing a casing for the cells, cooling systems and connectors. For electric vehicles (xEV), these modules are subsequently grouped in a so-called battery pack that includes an outside casing, a battery management system (BMS), various sensors, cooling components and cables. This is sketched in the figure below.

What are battery raw materials and where are they originating from?

There are many materials present in cell components as electrodes, electrolytes and separators. When focusing on the active materials, the most relevant ones are aluminium (Al), cadmium (Cd), graphite (C*), iron (Fe), lithium (Li), lead (Pb), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni), phosphorous (P), silicon (Si) and zinc (Zn).

What are the supply risk issues of battery raw materials?

Battery supply chains comprise of several stages, starting from raw materials sourcing, materials refining into chemically active materials, components and cell manufacturing, and when needed a module/pack assembly (e.g. for large-capacity end-products such as electric vehicles and energy storage systems). The most technically complex and costly step is the cell manufacture.

Acute supply risks stem from extreme geographic concentration and geopolitical instability in primary producing nations. For raw materials like cobalt, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) remains the dominant global supplier, accounting for roughly 75% of world output (USGS, 2024). Crucially, cobalt is rarely mined in isolation; the vast majority is extracted as a byproduct of copper mining. Consequently, cobalt supply stability is directly tethered to global copper market dynamics and DRC infrastructure risks.
While industrial operations dominate DRC mining, a portion of output historically originated from artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM). Similar to informal mining sectors for gold or copper, the cobalt ASM market share fluctuates heavily based on global spot prices; recent data indicates that prolonged low prices and massive industrial capacity expansions have driven the ASM cobalt share down to historic lows of under 2% (Cobalt Institute, 2025).
Despite this volume shift, informal mining sites across critical metal supply chains—whether artisanal cobalt in Katanga or informal nickel and gold extraction across Southeast Asia—continue to present severe localized hazards. From a social and environmental standpoint, workers in unmonitored pits face landslide risks, heavy metal dust inhalation, water contamination, and localized radiation exposure. Poor sanitation, inadequate safety equipment, and risks of child labor remain persistent concerns in informal sectors (BGR, 2026).
To mitigate these supply chain risks, major industrial producers of battery metals have increasingly adopted mandatory third-party assurance and traceability standards, such as The Copper Mark and the Responsible Minerals Initiative (IEA, 2025; Cobalt Institute, 2025)[1].

A relevant supply chain risk stems from severe price volatility, which threatens the financial stability required for long-term investments in mining and refining capacity. Following record highs in 2022, markets for battery minerals encountered deep price corrections driven by near-term supply gluts and shifting demand expectations, leading to project delays and reduced capital expenditures.

Lithium is extracted primarily through two methods: brine evaporation and hard-rock mining. In brine evaporation, lithium-rich saltwater is pumped from underground reservoirs into massive surface ponds, where sunlight gradually evaporates the water, concentrating the lithium salts before they are chemically refined. In hard-rock mining, lithium-containing ore (e.g. spodumene) is excavated from open-pit mines, crushed, and subjected to high-temperature thermal and chemical processing. Short-term and medium-term availability has largely kept pace with demand due to substantial new brine and hard-rock capacity starting activities in South America, Australia, and North America. However, sharp price declines from historic peaks have forced higher-cost producers to curtail operations, creating long-term supply risk if investment lags behind projected demand toward the end of the decade. The structural dynamics for nickel have also evolved dramatically. Historically, battery-grade nickel sulphate—essential for high-energy NMC and NCA cathode chemistries—was constrained by the scarcity of class I nickel sulfide deposits. This bottleneck has been substantially reshaped by the rapid scaling of High-Pressure Acid Leach (refining facilities, notably in Indonesia. High-Pressure Acid Leach processing successfully converts abundant, lower-grade Class II laterite ores into battery-grade intermediate products like Mixed Hydroxide Precipitate. While this technological shift has alleviated immediate class I supply shortages, it has concentrated global nickel refinement heavily within a single region and introduced new environmental and regulatory considerations[2].

Graphite supply faces high risk due to extreme geographic concentration, with China controlling roughly 65% to 70% of global natural graphite extraction and over 90% of synthetic graphite refining and anode production (IEA, 2025). While synthetic graphite offers a direct functional substitute or blend, it requires energy-intensive processing that remains concentrated in Chinese supply chains and subject to strict export controls. Consequently, battery-grade graphite is classified as a critical supply risk, driving efforts in North America and Europe to build localized synthetic production and diversify natural graphite imports from regions such as Africa and South America (Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, 2025; USGS, 2025)[3].

Unfortunately supply risk extends beyond primary extraction to the chemical refining of critical minerals, as processing facilities are rarely co-located with mine sites. Major midstream operators import unrefined concentrates or intermediate products (such as DRC cobalt hydroxide or Australian spodumene) for conversion into battery-grade chemical precursor materials like lithium hydroxide and nickel sulphate. Following sustained capital investment, China maintains a central position in midstream processing, controlling roughly 60% to 90% of global refining capacity for cobalt, lithium, nickel, and graphite (IEA, 2025).

This geographical disconnect between extraction and processing creates a secondary supply chain bottleneck. Although North America and Europe have initiated domestic refining projects—such as emerging European lithium conversion facilities—localized capacity remains limited, leaving Western supply chains heavily reliant on imported refined compounds to meet cathode manufacturing demand (European Commission, 2025; USGS, 2025).

What EU policies and initiatives are relevant regarding sustainable supply of battery raw materials?

There are several key EU policies, measures and documents steering towards a more sustainable supply of battery raw materials:

In 2008, the Commission adopted the Raw Materials Initiative. This initiative sets out a strategy for tackling the issue of access to raw materials in the EU. The strategy has 3 pillars that aim to ensure fair and sustainable supply of raw materials from global markets, sustainable supply of raw materials within the EU and resource efficiency and supply of 'secondary raw materials' through recycling.

The European Innovation Partnership on Raw Materials (EIP-RM)  is a stakeholder platform that brings together representatives from industry, public services, academia and NGOs. Its mission is to provide high-level guidance to the European Commission, Members States and private actors on innovative approaches to the challenges related to raw materials. One of the tasks relates to enhancing the EU Raw Materials Knowledge Base and managing the RMIS. Hence the provision of the latest battery raw materials data on RMIS.

A key EIP-RM action relates to the preparation of the EU Raw Materials Scoreboard. Here, specific information related to e-mobility and raw materials in batteries is provided in the Introduction. under the EIP-RM relate to conflict minerals and responsible sourcing as well as R&D related to substitution and new battery chemistries for the future.

The  Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP) was adopted in 2022. This plan covered, amongst others, the improvement of the markets for secondary raw materials (SRM), including recovery of critical raw materials (CRMs) from batteries. This is discussed in more detail in the 2018 JRC report on CRMs and the circular economy. This reports highlights that the EU is relatively well-positioned globally with established existing collection and recycling practices. On the 4^th of March 2019, the European Commission adopted a comprehensive report on the implementation of the Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP).

More information on the EIP, the CEAP and other policy documents and initiatives related to raw materials can be found in the RMIS Policy & Legislation tile.

In 2017, the Renewed Industry Policy Strategy targeted investments in a smart, innovative and sustainable industry for Europe. As one of the actions, a revised list of critical raw materials helps to highlight the needs for the secure, sustainable and affordable supply for the EU manufacturing industry. Several of the CRMs are found in batteries.

As part of the third mobility package of the renewed Industry Policy Strategy, the Strategic Action Plan for Batteries aims, mainly in its first pillar, to support the (primary and secondary) raw materials activities of the Battery Alliance. For Europe, this Strategic Action Plan on Batteries aims to develop a significantly sized European battery cells manufacturing and fully competitive value chain in Europe.

In 2018, a recent overview of raw material developments is highlighted in a specific Commission Staff Working Document - Report on Raw Materials for Battery Applications. Various work streams of the Strategic Action Plan on Batteries are currently being implemented (see Implementation of the Strategic Action Plan on Batteries).

The Batteries Directive 2006/66/EC, is the first EU legislation entirely dedicated to batteries. It established rules for batteries placed on the market in the EU regarding their content of hazardous substances and sets specific rules for the collection, treatment, recycling and disposal of waste batteries and accumulators. It was meant to improve the environmental performance of batteries and accumulators and of the activities of all economic operators involved.

EU Battery Regulation (EU 2023/1542): Replacing the 2006 Batteries Directive, this regulation governs the full battery life cycle. It enforces mandatory supply chain due diligence for battery raw materials, sets carbon footprint disclosures, establishes minimum targets for recycled content recycling efficiency and recovery of materials (for lithium, cobalt, nickel, and lead) from waste batteries, sets minimum requirements on performance and durability and mandates the Digital Battery Passport to ensure end-to-end material traceability. For more information on these measures and on the JRC support to the Batteries Regulation are available at this link.

Critical Raw Materials Act (CRMA - Regulation EU 2024/1252): Enacted in 2024 to reduce external dependencies on refined battery metals, the CRMA establishes 2030 benchmarks: at least 10% of the EU's strategic raw materials must be extracted domestically, 40% processed within the EU, and 25% sourced from secondary recycled materials, while capping reliance on any single non-EU supplier at 65%.

Net Zero Industry Act & Circular Economy Frameworks: Expanding upon the Circular Economy Action Plan (CEAP) and the European Battery Alliance, these industrial policies streamline permitting for strategic European extraction, refining, and recycling projects, aiming to build a globally competitive domestic battery ecosystem.

What drives the battery material market, and how does the EU monitor its critical mineral supply chain?

The overall supply-demand balance across the battery value chain is shaped by evolving markets and technological dynamics. On the demand side, rapid electric mobility growth and grid-scale energy storage expansion continue to accelerate long-term critical mineral requirements, alongside a notable shift toward alternative chemistries like Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP). On the supply side, extensive extraction and refining capacity pipelines - paired with recent market corrections - have led to dynamic adjustments in operational mine capacity and project timelines.

Closed-loop recycling and secondary material recovery play an increasingly critical role in mitigating primary supply risks, contributing to enhance European strategic autonomy and to build, a circular battery economy. Through the Joint Research Centre (JRC) and the Raw Materials Information System (RMIS), the European Union maintains comprehensive material flow analyses, stock-and-flow projections, and supply-demand foresight models across key battery minerals.

Under the framework of the EU Battery Regulation (EU 2023/1542), harmonized data structures for battery collection, recycling efficiencies, and secondary material recovery rates (specifically for lithium, cobalt, nickel, and copper) are fully integrated into EU monitoring studies. Regular JRC Clean Energy Technology Observatory (CETO) assessment reports provide ongoing evaluations of global and domestic market trends, technology developments, and circular material flows across all supply chain stages.

Footnotes