Raw materials policy

The forgotten battery raw materials: Iron ore – electromobility on toxic sludge avalanches

Iron is an important raw material in battery production. It is installed in lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries in the cathode and is necessary for the production of steel from which battery housings are made. Through [...]
Read more

The forgotten battery raw materials: bauxite and aluminium – dust in lungs, batteries in cars

Aluminum plays an important role in the production of batteries in two areas: On the one hand, in addition to steel, the raw material is regularly used in the production of the battery housing. On the other hand, [...]
Read more

The forgotten battery raw materials: Copper - When Conductivity Becomes Suffering

Copper is a central raw material for the production of batteries due to its very good electrical conductivity. Although the raw material can be recycled several times without loss of quality, more than half [...]
Read more

Extractivism Reloaded – commodity policy in Latin America since the boom from 2003

At the beginning of the 2000s, Latin America showed that things could be different: Starting from Venezuela, ‘progressive’ governments were elected in various countries and the so-called ‘Left Decade’ heralded. According to [...]
Read more