Abstract:

Critical minerals are essential in many technologies that support the global transition to clean energy. A typical electric car requires six times the mineral inputs of a conventional car, and an onshore wind plant requires nine times more mineral resources that a gas-fired power plant¹. Critical minerals include (but not limited to) copper, rare earth minerals, molybdenum, silicon, lithium, graphite, cobalt, nickel, zinc and manganese.

Global demand for critical minerals is forecast to increase significantly in the next decades to enable the global transition to green and digital economies. The world bank forecasts a 500 percent increase is required by 2050 in production of minerals such as cobalt that is used in batteries for energy transition. Demand for minerals such as lithium and graphite could increase by as much as 4,000 percent². The success of the energy transition is contingent on the way the critical minerals are mined and produced.

Looking forward, the critical minerals sector is set to see significant global growth, however this growth needs to be undertaken in a low carbon way to achieve Government net zero goals and mining company net-zero targets. The case study will inform the low carbon development in the Canadian critical minerals sector.

International Energy Agency. 2021. The Role of Critical Minerals in Clean Energy Transitions.
World Bank Group. 2020. Minerals for Climate Action: The Mineral Intensity of the Clean Energy Transition.

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Aynsley Neufeld