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Workers photographed at a lithium mine in Chile on August 24, 2022. Lithium is integral to the batteries that power electric vehicles.

John Moore | Getty Images News | Getty Images

Demand for the critical minerals key to a future centered around low and zero-emission technologies is surging, according to the International Energy Agency, with the energy industry’s ever-growing needs seen as a key driver.

In a new report published Tuesday, the Paris-based organization said the period between 2017 and 2022 saw a “tripling in overall demand for lithium, a 70% jump in demand for cobalt, and a 40% rise in demand for nickel.”

The IEA’s Critical Minerals Market Review said the main factor behind the increase was “demand from the energy sector.”

Investment in the development of critical minerals increased by 30% in 2022, building upon a 20% rise in 2021, the IEA said.

“Companies specialising in lithium development recorded a 50% increase in spending, followed by those focusing on copper and nickel,” it added, noting that firms in China nearly doubled their spending on investment last year.

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In Dec. 2022, the IEA said renewables were on course to overtake coal and become the planet’s biggest source of electricity generation by the middle of this decade.

Such is the role that critical minerals play in the operation of technologies including wind turbines and EVs, the stakes are high.

If all the projects planned for the critical minerals sector come to fruition, there may be enough supply to meet climate pledges announced by governments, the IEA said.

There are challenges ahead, however, with the risk of delays to projects as well as “technology-specific shortfalls” providing “little room for complacency about the adequacy of supply.”

In a sign of the huge task facing the planet, the IEA said more projects would still be required by the end of this decade in order to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, a key goal of the Paris Agreement.

The market size for minerals crucial to the energy transition hit $320 billion in 2022, a doubling across the past five years. Start-ups in the critical minerals sector raised $1.6 billion last year, a record.

The record deployment of technologies like batteries and solar PV was, the IEA said, driving “unprecedented growth in the critical minerals markets.”

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Given their huge importance to low and zero emission technologies — lithium, for example, is integral to the batteries that power EVs — the development of sites that can mine and process critical minerals has a significant geopolitical aspect.

China, for example, leads the extraction of graphite and rare earths and the processing of lithium, according to the IEA’s analysis.

Despite this, the world’s second largest economy is still hugely reliant on another country, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, for mined cobalt.

Overall, the IEA’s report said there had been limited progress when it came to the diversification of supply sources in the past few years, adding that “the situation has even worsened in some cases.”

Citing its analysis of project pipelines, the IEA said there were signs of a “somewhat improved picture” for mining, but added that refining operations were a different story.

“The majority of planned projects are developed in incumbent regions, with China holding half of planned lithium chemical plants and Indonesia representing nearly 90% of planned nickel refining facilities.”

The sustainability credentials of the entire critical minerals industry needs work, too. The IEA said water withdrawals had nearly doubled between 2018 and 2021, while greenhouse gas emissions were stubbornly high.

“At a pivotal moment for clean energy transitions worldwide, we are encouraged by the rapid growth in the market for critical minerals, which are crucial for the world to achieve its energy and climate goals,” Fatih Birol, the IEA’s executive director, said.

“Even so, major challenges remain,” Birol added. “Much more needs to be done to ensure supply chains for critical minerals are secure and sustainable.”

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Tesla now offers discounted financing on Cybertruck as the truck turns out to be a flop

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March 6, 2025

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Tesla now offers discounted financing on Cybertruck as the truck turns out to be a flop

Tesla has started to offer discounted financing on Cybertruck as the electric pickup truck undoubtedly turns out to be a flop.

Tesla claimed over 1 million reservations for the Cybertruck, and CEO Elon Musk said he could see Tesla producing 500,000 units per year.

However, that was before Tesla announced that the production version would be much more expensive and have a shorter range than what was initially announced.

The Cybertruck has now been in production for a year and a half, and it looks like Tesla would be lucky to sell about 10% of Musk’s goal of 500,000 units.

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The automaker doesn’t report Cybertruck sales, but it is estimated that Tesla delivered roughly 40,000 Cybertrucks in 2024, and it is expected to have even more issues selling the truck this year.

Tesla has taken several steps to help sales.

We reported that Tesla launched Cybertruck leases to help move vehicles. The company is even still tucked with “Foundations Series” Cybertrucks, and we found out that Tesla buffed “Foundations Series” badges out of some trucks to sell them as cheaper regular Cybertrucks.

For the remaining “Foundations Series,” which there still are despite Tesla switching to regular Cybertruck production in October, Tesla has even offered free Supercharging for life.

Now, Tesla is stepping up its game, and it is offering discounted financing on new Cybertruck orders:

Tesla announced 1.99% APR for a limited time:

1.99% APR available for a limited time for well-qualified buyers

WIthout the “promotion”, the rate for excellent credit is 5.84%.

While Tesla is discounting the rates, it is not discounting them as much as for new Model 3 orders.

We reported earlier this week that Tesla offers 0% and 0.99% with $0 down on new Model 3 orders in the US until the end of the quarter.

Electrek’s Take

It is very possible that Tesla can’t sell more than 10,000 Cybertrucks this quarter, which would extrapolate to 40,000 units per year or less than 10% of what Elon said he would see Tesla delivering.

Now, the cheaper single motor Cybertruck should help, but by how much? It could bring Tesla to 20-30% of the volume Elon saw possible?

I think it’s fairly clear that the Cybertruck is a flop.

Tesla launched a single new vehicle in the last 5 years and it is a flop.

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Toyota launched its cheapest EV in China and it crashed the server starting at just $15,000

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March 6, 2025

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Toyota launched its cheapest EV in China and it crashed the server starting at just ,000

Toyota-cheapest-EV-China

Toyota looks to grab a bigger share of the world’s largest EV market as it takes aim at BYD and other low-cost leaders. On Thursday, Toyota launched its cheapest EV in China, the bZ3X, starting at roughly $15,000. The new electric SUV crashed the server with over 10,000 orders in an hour.

Meet Toyota’s cheapest EV in China, the bZ3X

The bz3X is Toyota’s “first 100,000 yuan-level pure electric SUV” in China and its cheapest EV to hit the market so far.

Toyota’s Chinese joint venture, GAC-Toyota officially launched the “Bozhi 3X,” or bZ3X for short, in China on March 6. Shortly after, the company said orders for its new electric SUV were “so popular that the server crashed” after revealing prices start at just over $15,000 (109,800 yuan).

After securing over 10,000 orders in just one hour, Toyota boasted again that “the server is overwhelmed.” The launch comes after blind pre-orders opened in December, starting at just under $14,000 (100,000 yuan).

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The bZ3X is available in two versions, with or without its full-scenario smart driving tech. The non-smart tech model starts at 109,800 yuan ($15,000) with five trim options while the smart driving model starts at 149,800 yuan ($20,500).

Toyota-cheapest-EV-China-bZ3X
Toyota launches its cheapest EV in China, the bZ3X (Source: GAC-Toyota)

For 159,800 yuan ($22,000), the range-topping “610 Max” trim provides up to 610 km (379 miles) CLTC range from a 67.92 kWh LFP battery. The base “430 Air” gets up to 430 km (267 miles) from a 50.03 kWh LFP battery pack.

Toyota said the interior provides “a mobile space that is comfortable as home,” with front and rear seats that can fold down to provide nearly 10 feet (3 meters) of space.

Inside, the electric SUV has a 14.6″ infotainment screen with voice recognition and an 8.8″ driver display. It also includes a two-spoke multi-function steering wheel.

Toyota’s new bZ3X is its first vehicle with the Momenta 5.0 Intelligent Driving System. Powered by NVIDIA Drive AGX Orin X, it comes with 25 ADAS features, such as parallel parking, remote control parking, high-speed pilot, light traffic assist, and blind spot monitoring.

Toyota-bZ3X-SUV-pre-orders
Toyota-bZ3X-SUV-pre-orders

GAC-Toyota claimed it will be “one of the first automakers in the world to realize a one-stage end-to-end intelligent driving model.” With human-like intelligence, the vehicle “gets smarter and better with use.”

At 4,600 mm long, 1,875 mm wide, and 1,645 mm tall, Toyota’s cheapest EV in China is about the size of BYD’s Yuan Plus (Atto 3) at 4,455 mm long, 1,875 mm wide, and 1,615 mm tall. Starting at 115,800 yuan ($16,000), Toyota’s new bZ3X slightly undercuts BYD’s electric SUV.

What do you think of Toyota’s new electric SUV? Would you buy one for around $15,000? We’ll keep dreaming.

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New cars from Volvo, VW, Cadillac, and more – plus 0% on Model 3 as Tesla sales fall

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March 6, 2025

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New cars from Volvo, VW, Cadillac, and more – plus 0% on Model 3 as Tesla sales fall

It’s been a big day for big reveals with the all-new Volvo ES90, a new compact electric city car from Volkswagen, plus a pair of new, over-the-top EVs from General Motors that perfectly exemplify American excess. All this and maybe the dawn of the long-awaited “Tesla Killer” on today’s revealing episode of Quick Charge!

GM is practically daring the competition to build a bigger, badder EV with a new, bigger $133,000 Cadillac Escalade and 1,100 hp off-road special in the form of the new Chevrolet Silverado EV ZR2. Finally, you guys are never happy … try to enjoy this episode, anyway!

Prefer listening to your podcasts? Audio-only versions of Quick Charge are now available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, TuneIn, and our RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.

New episodes of Quick Charge are recorded, usually, Monday through Thursday (and sometimes Sunday). We’ll be posting bonus audio content from time to time as well, so be sure to follow and subscribe so you don’t miss a minute of Electrek’s high-voltage daily news.

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Drop us a line at tips@electrek.co. You can also rate us on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, or recommend us in Overcast to help more people discover the show.

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