Fastmarkets launches iron phosphate price

London, December 15, 2023 – Fastmarkets, an industry-leading cross-commodity price-reporting agency (PRA), continues to bring transparency to the battery raw materials market with the launch of an iron phosphate price. Iron phosphate is the precursor of lithium iron phosphate batteries.   

Currently, China is the main producer and consumer of iron phosphate, accounting for more than 90% of global output and consumption. Lithium iron phosphate batteries (LFP) remain the dominant chemistry in China’s domestic electric vehicle (EV) and energy storage system (ESS) markets, primarily due to their cost advantage over that of NCM batteries and their stable performance. Read more in this article.  

In the first 11 months of 2023, 339.7 GWh of EV batteries were installed in vehicles in China, with 229.8 GWh (67.6%) of the total being LFP batteries, according to the China Automotive Battery Innovation Alliance. 

LFP battery adoption outside of China is still at an early stage but is expected to grow as global economies take strides to promote the adoption of EVs to help fuel the energy transition. Fastmarkets’ analyst team expects LFP batteries to represent 48% of global battery demand by 2033, with an upside risk to an increase in that market share.  

Raju Daswani, CEO of Fastmarkets, said: “The launch of an iron phosphate price assessment in China complements our existing price offering in lithium and other battery raw materials. It underscores Fastmarkets’ commitment to bringing transparency to the dynamic battery market. With the growth in LFP market share expected, Fastmarkets is proud to add to its offering, helping shape the future of the battery raw materials market.” 

The new prices will be assessed every Friday on a delivered China basis and published at 4 pm GMT.

As well as price reporting, Fastmarkets – through its team of 20 battery raw materials analysts – provides market insight reports and data covering major cathode and anode active materials, including recycling/black mass. Short-term analysis and forecasts are published weekly while long-term forecasts are released quarterly, spanning a ten-year outlook horizon and providing a deep dive into the supply-demand dynamics of key materials in the value chain. The team also produces a monthly battery cost index report that offers indicative costs of the cathode, anode and battery cell production.