Meeting net zero targets requires the decarbonisation of energy and transport. This increases demand for offshore wind and electric vehicle products, which in turn require increased supply of technology metals.
Drivers
Climate change and energy security are the key drivers of our energy transition to a low-carbon future. Decarbonisation relies on multiple clean-energy technologies that are metal intensive, such as wind turbines, solar photovoltaics, batteries and hydrogen technologies, as well as ancilliary infrastructure, such as expanded electricity networks.
The deployment of clean-energy technologies will require more metals in greater quantities to become available within short timescales. Demand for several of the elements used in decarbonisation technologies, such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, rare earth elements, copper and others, is projected to be very high. For example, the International Energy Agency suggests that, to achieve net zero globally by 2050, we would require six times more mineral inputs in 2040 than today.
UK perspective
The clean energy system is far more diverse than the fossil fuel-based economy and relies on a large range of technologies. The energy and automotive sectors are some of the major parts of the UK economy, the automotive sector alone generating more than £60 billion in turnover in 2020. Decarbonising and electrifying these two industries constitute a major investment plan for the UK and technological reconversion challenges.
Considered one of the best locations in Europe for wind power, the UK is currently at the forefront for investment in both offshore and onshore wind turbines. As of 2022, just over 11 000 turbines were operational in the UK, generating up to 25 GWh of electricity — an essential step in diversifying and securing the UK's energy supply.
Exporting more than 85 per cent of its automotive production, the conversion to battery electric vehicles has sparked large-scale investment for development of multiple UK gigafactories for an equivalence of 140 GWh annual production by 2030. This industrialisation will constitute a necessary development for the UK to comply with international trade regulations, notably that of the EU, the UK's main commercial partner.