Automotive industry faces long term battery, raw material supply issues, Tavares says

Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares holds a news convention after conference with unions, in Turin, Italy, March 31, 2022. REUTERS/Massimo Pinca

MILAN, Might 10 (Reuters) – The automotive industry faces a shortage of batteries and raw products in the coming years as part of its transition toward electric mobility, the head of Stellantis (STLA.MI) Carlos Tavares mentioned on Tuesday.

Talking at the FT Foreseeable future of the Car 2022 conference, Tavares explained he could foresee the business could suffer offer challenges with batteries all around 2025, 2026.

“And if there is no small supply of batteries then there will be a important dependence of the Western earth vis-à-vis Asia. That is some thing we can conveniently anticipate,” the CEO of the world’s fourth greatest carmaker mentioned.

“The velocity at which now all people is developing production capability for batteries is possibly on the edge to be ready to aid the quickly modifying marketplaces in which we are functioning,” he reported.

Tavares explained uncooked product provide could also pose structural challenges in the coming several years as electric vehicles ended up on normal 500 kilos heavier than standard combustion motor types.

“That suggests a great deal of raw content extraction, that signifies ultimately scarcity of uncooked products, that signifies sooner or later geopolitical challenges,” Tavares mentioned. “We may perhaps not like the way individuals raw resources are likely to be sourced in a couple of several years”.

He said automakers have been concentrating on know-how and had been prepared to “pour” battery electric cars on the current market, though they and regulators had been missing vision on all extensive phrase implications of the mobility changeover.

“What’s up coming? Where by is the clean up vitality? Wherever is the charging infrastructure? The place are the uncooked products? The place are the geopolitical dangers of sourcing those uncooked elements? Who is wanting at the full photograph of this transformation?” Tavares mentioned.

Reporting by Giulio Piovaccari, Editing by Louise Heavens

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