The future holds a lot of new and interesting technology, and we’re definitely ready for it.

At least that’s what we’d like to think as we move forward with advancements that’ll affect us for decades to come.

You probably either own an electric vehicle (EV) or know someone who does. EVs are just one of the ways we’re advancing technology in order to make us less dependent on our depleting resources.

EVs and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) can be powered solely by electricity. They offer better fuel economy than conventional vehicles and can also reduce fuel costs dramatically because of the high efficiency of their electric motors.

Swiss Bank UBS estimates that EVs will hit 14% penetration globally by 2025.

In addition, Bloomberg forecasts that sales of EVs will hit 41 million by 2040.

The U.S. isn’t the only country that’s pushing consumers toward EVs. Other countries around the globe have also been extremely proactive in implementing new policies and regulations that give consumers more incentive to purchase EVs rather than traditional gas-powered vehicles. And this push will obviously have an impact on the environment.

For example, Germany mandated that all new cars are going to need to be emission free by 2030. And Norway wants to pass legislation to ban sales of gasoline-powered cars by 2025.

Main components that are crucial to powering EVs are lithium-ion batteries. The amount of lithium needed to power and supply the increased demand for EVs is rising.

Lithium’s demand continues to soar as more technology like EVs, smartphones, and energy storage depends on lithium.

Companies like Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) and Samsung are always striving to improve the battery life on their newest phones because it’s what their consumers want.

I know it’s what I want when looking for a new phone. I want the battery to last throughout the day and to not die if I’m only using one app for a few minutes.

Lithium-ion batteries are used inside your phone. Over the years, they’ve become more powerful and a lot smaller, but no matter their sizes, lithium-ion batteries are still the go-to power sources for smartphones.

Then we have a fairly new concept — energy storage. This market is new, but it continues to gain an incredible amount of momentum because it’s a new way to shift from old energy infrastructures to focus on enhancing our energy capacity, flexibility, and reliability.

Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) is one company that’s been focusing on providing energy storage to every household with its Powerwall residential energy storage system.

A lot of people have been investing in renewable resources for their residential power — resources like solar.

You’ve probably even considered getting solar panels for your home. Solar panels produce energy while the sun is out, but what happens when the sun isn’t out?

You’ll need that energy stored somewhere so you can draw from it later if you’re unable to get enough energy from the renewable resource.

Macquarie Research estimated that the demand for lithium in 2015 exceeded the supply. In 2017, we could be approaching an equilibrium that could last for a year before we see a deficit again — the only difference is that this deficit will stick around.

Lithium is powering our present lifestyles and will power the future we’ve been building.

The recent upswing of new technology involving lithium, along with companies that are becoming more reliant on it, could definitely affect its supply.

Joe Lowry, a lithium industry consultant and commentator, said: “Supply shortage will cause significant issues in the battery supply chain by 2023.”

So, what will happen when we run out of lithium? What will we use to power all the devices and other technology that we’ve grown so dependent on?

I’ll tell you one thing: Prices for lithium will increase and companies like Apple and Tesla will pay those prices to continue powering their products until we become dependent on something else.

Until next time,

Jennifer Clark
Pro Trader Today