65 GLOBAL NATURAL GRAPHITE SUPPLY – A RESASON TO WORRY? *L. Weber First Vice Chairman International Organizing Committee of the World Mining Congresses (*Presenting author: office@geologie-weber.at) ABSTRACT Due to its versatile properties, graphite is used as an indispensable raw material for different areas of application, e.g. refractory products, lubricants, brake pads and clutch linings. However, high-quality graphite is increasingly needed for anodes in high-performance batteries for electric vehicles. It is assumed that the demand for graphite will increase by 500% by 2050. For this reason, assessing security of supply is particularly important. Forecasts based on currently available production data can, at best, provide a glimpse into the past. Information about available resources is more meaningful. In this study, over 600 deposits were recorded in terms of CRIRSCO-compliant tonnage, C-grade, deposit type, age of formation, tectonic position, etc. This basic information was linked to further geopolitical and socio-economic data (e.g. continents, world regions, political stability, understanding of democracy, environmental performance, annual per capita income). External and internal supply risks were derived from this. The results of this study show that over 90% of the resources identified are subject to high supply risks in some cases. Of the more than 45 countries examined, only 4 production countries currently show no discernible supply risks. Even if these risks are merely theoretical, they must be taken seriously as warning signs. Graphite is considered a critical raw material not only in Europe, but also in many other consumer countries. For this reason, continuous monitoring of the global and sectoral distribution structure of graphite resources is of particular importance. KEYWORDS Graphite, Global Resources, Internal and External Supply Risks 1. GRAPHITE, A VERSATILE MINERAL COMMODITY There is hardly any other mineral raw material that offers such a wide range of properties and applications. Due to its low hardness, graphite is used in the production of brake and clutch linings to reduce abrupt friction and the resulting noise. High-temperature-resistant lubricants are made from graphite. Due to its temperature resistance, graphite is indispensable in refractory technology. There is a rapidly growing demand for anodes in batteries, especially for electric vehicles. For example, an average of 80 kg of graphite is required for a Li-ion battery for an electric vehicle (PELL, et al. 2021).
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