Three reasons why you need to attend the European Battery Raw Materials Conference 2022

High prices and volatility coupled with greater demand for electric vehicles in Europe than ever before mean that market participants need clarity on the challenges that lie ahead

Whether you’re looking to learn more about European battery raw materials market fundamentals, or you want access to crucial updates and market trends across the supply chain, this year’s event has you covered.

You can register via the link here.

Here are three reasons you should attend this year’s European Battery Raw Materials Conference in Barcelona from 20-21 September 2022.

1. Tackle security of supply and supply chain security concerns

With demand for the BRMs that power electric vehicles (EV) continuing to exceed supply – particularly for lithium – it is becoming all the more important that auto and battery makers focus on securing long-term supply. While current and new projects, as well as recycling capacity, will play a critical role in mitigating supply deficits in the next 10 years, there is a real concern if these sources will be efficient and effective enough to feed EV demand.

While these concerns are not exclusive to Europe, this region has its own unique set of supply and supply chain security challenges. This year’s European Battery Raw Materials Conference will give attendees the opportunity to hear from those with a wealth of experience in the market on how to tackle these concerns along the supply chain.

On the agenda:

  • Keynote presentation from LMC Automotive’s Sam Adham, titled ‘Understanding Europe’s EV market’
  • ‘Securing lithium for Europe’ with Hautala Hannu, CEO of Keliber, Ana Cabral-Gardner, co-chair and co-CEO of Sigma Lithium and Austin Devaney, CCO of Piedmont Lithium
  • A presentation on ‘Securing Europe’s supply of battery raw materials’ from Cristobal Garcia-Huidobro, CEO of Lithium Power International

2. Access forecasts and outlooks for all key materials

This includes price data and outlooks for lithium, cobalt, nickel, manganese and graphite, as well as insights into the risks high prices could bring for the future of EVs.

With expectations of both a recession and interest rate increase, all BRMs are facing macroeconomic headwinds. Consumers also think that spot prices for lithium could increase further, despite them already reaching near-historic highs. This not only affects the price of battery chemistries but also complicates the ability to build cars competitively priced to internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles. Sessions during this year’s conference will focus on both the risks to BRMs, and also supply and demand outlooks across the key materials so attendees have a holistic view of the market.

On the agenda:

  • Fastmarkets’ own Jon Stibbs, Dalila Ouerghi and Will Adams provide supply and demand outlooks for lithium, nickel and cobalt in ‘Pricing forecast for battery raw materials’
  • ‘Price volatility and future contracts: How to manage risk and protect profit margins’ with Fastmarkets senior price development manager, Peter Hannah, and Ian Caton from the CME
  • Dr. Corina Hebestreit from the European Carbon and Graphite Association and Hugues Jacquemin, CEO of Northern Graphite, discuss graphite in the session titled ‘Graphite: Are we heading from oversupply to undersupply?’

3. Understand new regulations, requirements and consumer expectations

The EV market in Europe poses different and specific challenges to the developing battery raw materials supply chain than other regions. Not only are the sustainability targets in Europe more stringent, but there is also the development of a ‘battery passport’ underway by a consortium of auto and battery makers. Customers are seeking greater assurance that EVs are built in sustainable and ethical ways. The ‘battery passport’ would seek to align the classification and standards of battery regulations in the EU so that business and regulators can easily access information on the battery’s composition.

The regulatory and ESG focus of this event will help market participants stay abreast of new regulations, requirements and consumer expectations.

On the agenda:

  • An executive panel titled ‘Building a world-leading sustainable battery industry’
  • A presentation on ‘Managing ESG risks in the EV battery supply chain’
  • ‘Building localized, sustainable and competitive supply chains for Europe’ with Francisco Carranza, CEO of Basquevolt, Matti Hietanen, CEO of Finnish Minerals Group, Ryan Parkin, CEO and managing director of Infinity Lithium and Dirk Spiers, founder of Spiers New Technologies

Register for the European Battery Raw Materials Conference 2022

You can view the full agenda for the event or register via this link to be part of this year’s conference.

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