A Chinese company has suspended the export of adsorbents used for lithium extraction in electric vehicle batteries, Reuters reported on 19th.
According to the report, Jiangsu Zhuhai Technology, a corporation that produces lithium adsorbents, notified its customers that it will stop exporting adsorbents from 1st of last month. Adsorbents are key equipment used to extract lithium from brine and other sources.
Jiangsu Zhuhai and another adsorbent producer, Sun Resin, are reportedly negotiating with the government regarding issues related to the export of lithium technologies. The chairman of Sun Resin noted about a month ago that the overseas expansion plan also includes the transfer of technology to customers.
China is the world's largest producer of adsorbents for lithium extraction, but its exact market share is not known. Previously, on 2nd of last month, China announced plans to pursue export controls on technologies related to battery component manufacturing and rare metal processing. The Ministry of Commerce of China released a draft listing of technologies subject to export bans or restrictions, adding some technologies and processes for manufacturing battery cathodes and extracting rare metals such as lithium and gallium.
The Ministry of Commerce, however, only stated that it would receive public opinions until 1st, without indicating when the technology export controls would be implemented. Some industry insiders report that while the technology export controls are merely proposals at present, they have already had the effect of limiting exports to certain countries.
Reuters analyzed that, although it is uncertain how strict the control measures will be when actually implemented, the push itself shows that China is willing to exert pressure on the United States, which is conducting a trade war using its dominance in mineral sectors like lithium. Reuters added that China's export ban on antimony to the U.S. announced in December last year has already had a negative impact on the Western automotive market.