The Energy Department announced plans to funnel over $3 billion into proposed projects across the U.S. for producing advanced batteries and materials. Why it matters: It’s among the biggest White House efforts to seed a domestic supply chain for materials used in EVs and energy storage. These subsidies sit at the intersection of three administration goals: energy transition, building U.S. […]
Battery Metals
Gold breaks $2,600 barrier as Fed cut bets prolong historic run
Gold soared above the $2,600 level on Friday for the first time, extending a rally boosted by bets for further U.S. interest rate cuts, and rising tensions in the Middle East. Spot gold was up 1.3% at $2,620.63 per ounce by 1:43 p.m. ET (1743 GMT), while U.S. gold futures settled 1.2% higher to $2,646.20. […]
Copper price hits two-month high after Fed rate cut
Copper rose to its highest level since mid-July a day after the Federal Reserve announced an aggressive interest cut of half a percentage point to stimulate the US economy and the labor market. Copper for delivery in October rose 2% from Wednesday’s settlement, touching $3.38 per pound ($9,636 per tonne) early Thursday morning on the […]
Germany launches raw materials fund to strengthen supply chains
The German government is launching a €1 billion ($1.1 billion) fund for investment in raw materials as it seeks to limit dependency on producers such as China for critical minerals. “Good news — the raw materials fund is coming,” Franziska Brantner, a deputy economy minister, said Wednesday in a post on X. “In a time of growing […]
BHP warns AI boom would worsen copper shortage
BHP (ASX, LON, NYSE: BHP), the world’s largest miner, has sounded alarm bells on the growing global adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) in all fields, not out of fear for the future of humanity, but as the technology requires more energy-intensive computing, which would boost global copper demand. The growth of data centres and AI […]
Gold price sets new record as Fed rate cut decision looms
Gold prices set another record on Monday ahead of this week’s Federal Reserve meeting, during which the US central bank will assess its monetary policy for the first time in over four years. Spot gold climbed as much as 0.5% to an all-time high of $2,589.70/oz. before pulling back to $2,579.89/oz. by 11:50 a.m. ET. […]
Solid-state battery with 1,070 Wh/L energy density could be game-changer for EVs
Researchers in Europe have developed a solid-state battery with increased energy density using a new method. The battery is claimed to be suitable for modern lithium-ion battery production lines and offers 1,070 Wh/L energy density. The prototype battery was developed by 14 European partners in the SOLiDIFY consortium. Developed in the state-of-the-art battery lab of […]
Struggling Northvolt stokes fear for Europe’s battery future
STOCKHOLM, Sept 13 (Reuters) – Northvolt’s shock decision this week to shrink its operations and cut jobs has sparked fears that Europe’s best shot at a home-grown electric vehicle battery champion may stall, sector experts and people familiar with the situation told Reuters. Struggling with order delays and the loss of a $2 billion BMW contract in […]
Nickel flowing to Europe shows Indonesia’s grip on global supply
European makers of stainless steel are turning to Indonesia for nickel as the country’s booming output forces plants in other countries to shutter. Exports to Europe of Indonesian nickel pig iron — an ingredient for stainless steel used primarily by Chinese producers — to Europe have surged to 87,485 tons this year from just 1,006 […]
Gold price hits new high as momentum builds for Fed rate cut
Gold prices hit a new record on Thursday after the latest set of US inflation and unemployment figures helped bolster the the chances of a Federal Reserve cut next week. Spot gold climbed 1.6% to a new all-time high of $2,554.78 per ounce, before falling to below $2,500 as of noon ET. Three-month US gold […]
