Study Warns Lithium-Ion Battery Production Emissions Could Rise Tenfold by 2050

The study focuses on emissions associated with manufacturing lithium-ion batteries, not the emissions avoided when batteries power vehicles or store renewable electricity. Ars Technica reports that electrifying vehicles and heating, and ensuring that the electricity for them comes from renewables, is the first task of the transition. As those dominant slices of the emissions pie shrink, categories with less potential to cut emissions become more important, according to the report.

Battery production emissions are not zero, and the total will grow as more batteries are used. The researchers estimate the current share at 0.18 percent of annual greenhouse gas releases. They project that it could rise by a factor of 10 or more by 2050.

The article lists several ways to reduce the emissions required to make a battery. Some elements used in various lithium-ion battery chemistries are more energy-intensive to mine and refine than others. Battery manufacturing involves many steps that could be made more energy-efficient. Recycling can return battery materials to the loop while requiring much less energy than mining.

Editor's Summary

A University of Melbourne-led study estimates that lithium-ion battery production accounts for 0.18 percent of annual greenhouse gas releases and could grow tenfold or more by 2050. It identifies more energy-efficient manufacturing, lower-impact material sourcing and recycling as ways to reduce those emissions. The finding places battery supply chains among the remaining emissions sources as electrification expands.