– Global and regional market overview for Lithium, Nickel, Cobalt, Manganese, Graphite and Rare Earth Elements 

– What must change to make low to mid-priced EVs a reality? 

– Which countries does Korea turn to shore up strategic alliances? 

– Strategies to protect against market volatility

– How to create a cost-competitive and ESG-compliant supply chain in Asia? Mid-stream chemicals: how viable are they as a solution from the ESG perspective?

· Roadmap of the project, starting from the feedstock to the final product requirement

• Conceptual design, R&D confirmation,      pilot-scale, commercial plant
• Fulfilment of the Capex & Opex      optimization, taking sustainability aspects into account
• Case study overview: LiOH.H2O from the caustic      leaching upstream process

– How is Asia positioning itself within the IRA?

– What are the IRA compliance criteria?

– What steps are involved in obtaining a diverse battery mix from various countries to qualify for tax credits under the IRA? How much ownership can OEMs achieve within a joint venture within a FEOC (Foreign Entity of Concern) and remain IRA-compliant?

– Where is the future of Korea PCAM JVs with Chinese firms?

– What is the future of Indonesian nickel?

– US elections 2024: possible outcomes and implications

· Insights into the world’s first direct recycle pilot line of lithium battery

· From extracting, purification to recovering: Technology insights for recovering by-products directly from battery electrodes and cells to produce reprocessed anode materials 

· Technology insights for extracting by-products scrap or waste directly from battery electrodes and cells to produce re-fabrication cathode & anode

· The process cost differences between electrode scrap and cell

· Use of low heating (Less than 500C), water and physical treatment

· Business models using re-fabrication cathode and anode

– Which chemistries will be taking the lead in the future, and what are the corresponding raw materials?

– How will changing chemistry trends affect Li carbonate and Li hydroxide demand?

– Will more OEMs follow through with LMFP technology?

– At what scale is the sodium-ion battery market expected to grow?

– What are the different options for the cathode, including solid-state batteries and layered transition metal oxides?

– How far can silicon go in substituting graphite in the anode?

– Will EV and ESS battery chemistries diverge?

· REE supply, demand, prices and outlook 

· How do rare earths fit into the energy transition and where are the main growth markets ?

· How are technology shifts changing rare earth demand and the types of products consumed?

· Where is rare earth production centred and what are the key geographic/geopolitical risks?

· What are the longer-term market balance expectations and what is the current landscape of rare earth project development?

– The rise of iron-rich cathodes as a product of choice for the fastest-growing Western Auto and ESS segments

– The push from customers for IRA-compliant product scale-up and how South Korea can continue growing its supply chain leadership accordingly

– The application of artificial intelligence to the R&D and scale-up process to ensure speed to scale on quality products

Battery Raw Materials derivatives are one of the newest and fastest moving parts of commodities risk management.  In just three years since their launch, Cobalt and Lithium linked futures and options have become an integral part of CME Group’s metals portfolio and are providing hedgers with liquid instruments to manage price risk.  CME looks forward to providing an overview of solutions and their growth story.

– Current supply and demand dynamics in the region 

– Geopolitical and regulatory factors that impact lithium supply

– Exploration and development of domestic lithium deposits 

– From Central and Eastern Asia to Africa and South America: New jurisdictions and investment opportunities 

– How does the culture play into the future of the lithium industry?

– Direct lithium extraction: market potential and future adoption outlook

– Selective sorbents, membranes, and ion exchange: What are the latest technological advancements?

– What recovery rates can be achieved?

– Efficiency and cost: can DLE offer a competitive advantage and potentially reduce production costs?

– How will DLE technologies minimize the environmental impact of lithium extraction, such as water consumption, carbon emissions and ecological disruption? 

– What is the projected floor for the prices of nickel, cobalt and manganese? 

– How will the expected oversupply of Indonesian nickel impact the global supply and demand?

– Is Indonesia going to change from being coal-dependent for its energy? Is it going to use more natural gas and renewables? Does it need to do that to tick ESG boxes to make the nickel and cobalt from Indonesia acceptable to Western companies that have high ESG standards?

– LMFP and high manganese batteries; what is the outlook for manganese?

Table 1: Sodium-Ion and alternative chemistries: Opportunity or a threat?

Table 2: Building a Sustainable and Rapidly Scalable Future for CAM

Table 3: Lithium Dynamics in South America: Deep Dive

Table 4: Demystifying PCAM

Table 5: Battery Recycling & Black Mass: Unlocking the secrets to battery lifetimes and battery recycling

Table 6: The Future of DLE

Table 7: The IRA and how to develop sustainable partnerships

Table 8: The Future of Lithium and Battery Materials Pricing 

Table 9: Graphite: potential development of a two-tiered market amid protectionist measures in the US, Europe and China

Table 10: Building commercially viable refining plant 

– Global and regional EV & ESS Battery demand forecast

– ESS market capacity and potential

– EV penetration in Asian and Western markets 

– Can we achieve the EV penetration that Europe and North America claim they want without a cheaper cathode?

– Shifting battery technology requirements and applications

– Gigafacories’s development outlook

– An overview of regulatory frameworks and their potential impact on trade flows, localised material processing, battery production and recycling

– Could increased costs force economies to consider returning to carbon-based technologies?

– The future of Critical Minerals Strategy in Quebec

– The Critical Raw Materials Act, Battery Passports: how will they impact both upstream and downstream trade flow from Asia to Europe?

– How does CRMA impact procurement and business decisions? 

– China’s graphite export restrictions

– The future of the Indonesian nickel policy

– Developments of India’s PLI scheme: How will the PLI scheme facilitate the supply chain of the EV ecosystem?

– Case Study: Ohio Project including project timeline, technical details, permitting process, construction contract, feedstock and offtakes, commissioning activities, business model and partnership opportunities.

– Alternatives to energy and chemical-intensive technologies

– Modular, localized, co-located technology creating local, cost-effective circular supply chains

– Achieving 44% lower carbon footprint 

– Local, traceable production compliant with IRA and EU legislation

– Black mass availability and its impact on the recycling industry and recovery strategies

– Global and regional outlook for black mass and pricing

– How much battery demand can come from recycled materials in the long term, and why?

– How much material supply can be sourced from recycling? 

– Key ESG and supply chain qualification criteria

– The material shift towards synthetic graphite: how sustainable is it, and how will it impact natural graphite developments? How will the market see the future of supply for the needle and petroleum coke?

– Qualifying for the US and European markets

– Processing technologies for more environmentally friendly graphite

– Graphite overcapacity in China: how long will it continue? What do companies do to manage to operate in a low-price environment?

– Achieving/making better performance and better capacity graphite

– Challenges and opportunities in building graphite mines in South Asia

– Uncovering opportunities amidst new global paradigms in natural resources

– Financing upstream and midstream opportunities: capital capacity vs capital requirement 

– The curse of being listed – market cap versus project NPV 

– The role of ECAs in Korea, Japan and elsewhere

– What government intervention is coming?

– The IRA vs ERMA: Evaluating investment potential in the US and Europe

– Project Finance: understanding the risk profile of mining projects and supply chains and how to mitigate it

– Localised battery value chain development and supply chain pinch points

· A brief introduction to NMR technology and why it is very well suited for lithium extraction

· Where and how in the process this is relevant

· Customer case studies

· Parameters beyond Lithium which can be of relevance

· Lithium hydroxide to lithium sulfide: A pathway for sulfide-based solid electrolytes in ASSB

· Overview of ASSBs with sulfide-based solid electrolytes and exciting possibilities for safer and higher-energy-density batteries

· Li2S with its high ionic conductivity, stability, and compatibility with lithium metal anodes – a compelling choice for use in ASSBs.

· Insights into recent advancements in the LiOH-to-Li2S, including the conversion process, precursor selection—investigating the importance of LiOH purity as starting material; reaction mechanisms—optimizing synthesis conditions during the conversion process; and commercialization—bridging the gap between scientific advancements and practical implementations.

– Market dynamics: Size of the markets, metal demand and consumption outlook

– Insights into economic growth, technological advancements and emerging trends 

– Supply and demand outlook for battery raw materials

– Will China’s push for EV adoption in rural areas boost battery material demand? 

– Forecast for penetration of electric 2 and 3-wheelers and ESS 

– Indonesia’s Nickel-rich resources overview

– Vietnam’s ambitions and potential for entering the battery space. How will it compete with its CJK neighbours and Europe/USA?

– Size of the market, metal demand and consumption outlook

– Forecast for penetration of electric 2 and 3-wheelers

– Investment landscape and opportunities

– Giga factories, ESS and mid-stream opportunities 

– PLI scheme and policy update – How is India incentivizing automotive and cell manufacturing investment?

– EV charging infrastructure – What is the strategy for increasing the number of charging stations in India