Global e-mobility might face delay, Mercedes CEO blames raw material scarcity

Mercedes-Benz CEO Ola Kaellenius has said that the global auto industry's electric mobility drive could face delay, due to the scarcity of key minerals that are used in EV batteries. Kaellenius said this in an interview with the German publication Die Zeit on Wednesday.

He said that the industrialization of mines and refinery capacities may not progress as quickly as demand for electric vehicles is increasing. “Should that happen, it would only delay e-mobility, but not prevent it," Mercedes-Benz CEO further added.

Ola Kaellenius' comment comes at a time when the global auto industry is pushing hard to adopt electric mobility. Not only the mass-market vehicle makers but the luxury car brands too rate emphasising on electric mobility. The demands for electric vehicles too are rising significantly around the world owing to several reasons.

These reasons include the increasing price of fossil fuel, tightening emission norms being imposed by governments, growing awareness around vehicular emission and its impact on global warming etc. Apart from that, the availability of a wide range of new electric cars too is impacting EV sales globally. All these factors are cumulatively impacting the sales of electric cars.

A report by EV Volume claims that electrified cars sold more than 6.5 million units around the world in 2021 with 11 per cent of them attributed to pure electric vehicles. In December 2021 alone, over 907,000 electrified cars were sold around the world, claims the report.

While the demands are on the positive side for the automakers and motivating them, the alarming picture is the scarcity of key mineral reserve that is used for making EV batteries. Also, the development of improved battery technology is slower than the growth for EVs. Hence, keeping a balance between demand and supply could become a tough task for automakers in the coming years.