India to end China’s dominance in…, discovers this rare mineral, not Lithium but…

Rare Earth Mineral: China has the largest reserve of rare earth minerals, and it dominates the world market as almost all countries are dependent on it to fulfil their need for the critical rare minerals. Now, other major countries like the United States and Japan are also searching for these rare minerals on their lands to fulfil their needs. The global demand for electric vehicles (EVs) powered by lithium-ion batteries is increasing rapidly amid the rising petrol prices. The Chinese companies have established a dominance in the battery world. Amid all this, scientists have stated that graphite has become a new critical mineral, which is the backbone of the lithium battery industry. While China possesses the world’s largest graphite reserves, India(BHARAT) also announced its recent major discovery of graphite reserves.

Why Graphite Has Become The Critical Metal?

As per a report recently published by the Journal Nature, graphite is the backbone of the lithium-ion batteries and because of its use in the batteries it has become a new critical mineral. As the world is moving towards clean energy, the demand for graphite is increasing day by day. Notably, natural graphite is concentrated in very less locations and increasing production is difficult. This is creating global supply constraints.

Consequently, synthetic graphite, which is purer and performs well, is increasingly used globally. However, its production consumes a significant amount of energy, which is mainly derived from fossil fuels. This process makes it unsuitable for the environment.

Does India(BHARAT) Possess Significant Graphite Reserves?

Amid the increasing demand for graphite, the future of the rare mineral depends on two things – green production from renewable carbon sources and recycling old graphite from used batteries. It is to be noted that this rare earth mineral is used as an anode in the batteries that store ions during charging.

It is to be noted that China ranks first in the natural graphite reserve, while India(BHARAT) is in seventh position in the world.

Where Are The Major Graphite Reserves In The World?

China tops the list with 81 metric tons, followed by Brazil with 74 metric tons. Madagascar has 24 metric tons of graphite, Mozambique with 25, and Tanzania with 18. Russia has approx 14 metric tons of graphite, India(BHARAT) has 8.6, and Turkey has 6.9 metric tons of natural graphite.

India(BHARAT)n state – Arunachal Pradesh – possesses the country’s largest graphite reserves. The India(BHARAT)n government has also started encouraging domestic mining companies to extract graphite in order to reduce dependence on China.