It is not as if Lithium is a abundant reserve that is available whenever you need.
Yes there are enough Lithium reserve even for the next 100s years even if EV were suddenly replacing all cars today. And it is much like oil, there are still HUGE amount of reserve.
But the problem is extraction. Or more precisely the cost of extraction. If some of these reserve cost 10x more to extract then no one will invest into extracting it. Example would be if US didn't perfected Fracking Natural Gas wouldn't be so much cheaper today.
Then there is the technology side of Battery. Telsa are NO expert in Battery Chemistry and Technology. They have currently zero expertise and experience with it. Compared to Panasonic or Other who have been perfecting the battery tech for decades.
The problem with today's battery isn't production capacity. Heck China could ramp up production of battery faster then you could even imagine and have a world of over supply issues within a year. The problem is with battery tech itself which requires innovation or even a leap forward.
Yes there are enough Lithium reserve even for the next 100s years even if EV were suddenly replacing all cars today. And it is much like oil, there are still HUGE amount of reserve.
But the problem is extraction. Or more precisely the cost of extraction. If some of these reserve cost 10x more to extract then no one will invest into extracting it. Example would be if US didn't perfected Fracking Natural Gas wouldn't be so much cheaper today.
Then there is the technology side of Battery. Telsa are NO expert in Battery Chemistry and Technology. They have currently zero expertise and experience with it. Compared to Panasonic or Other who have been perfecting the battery tech for decades.
The problem with today's battery isn't production capacity. Heck China could ramp up production of battery faster then you could even imagine and have a world of over supply issues within a year. The problem is with battery tech itself which requires innovation or even a leap forward.