VIDEO - Alex Laugharne: “Lithium Oversupply Fears Are a Bit Overblown”

Speaking with the Investing News Network at this year’s Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) convention, Alex Laugharne, principal consultant at CRU Group, shared his insights on the battery metals sector and the electric car revolution.

Laugharne said CRU Group’s forecast is for about 7.5 million electric vehicles (EVs) by 2025, of which the split is favoring full-battery electric vehicles over plug-in hybrid electric vehicles.

“That breakdown is quite important because the battery capacity in a full-battery electric vehicle is substantially larger than a plug-in hybrid,” he added.

Laugharne explained that “the real challenge for EVs is that there’s so much uncertainty,” not only in the number of EVs being forecasted but also in the subcategories of electric cars and in the intensity of uses of materials within those EVs themselves.

Speaking specifically about lithium, he shared his thoughts on the recent SQM (NYSE:SQM)-Corfo deal and whether investors should be worried about potential oversupply in the market.

“[The market is] moving from a deficit into a sort of fairly balanced situation through 2018 to 2019, and that will keep prices relatively well elevated around where they are at moment,” he noted.

But Laugharne said it’s important to remember in the current environment that “[v]irtually every producer is making fantastic margins of prices today, and that’s not always going to be sustainable over time.”

Watch the video above to learn more about his thoughts on lithium, cobalt and other battery metals. The transcript for this interview will be added shortly. Click here to view our PDAC 2018 playlist.

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Securities Disclosure: I, Priscila Barrera, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

Editorial Disclosure: The Investing News Network does not guarantee the accuracy or thoroughness of the information reported in the interviews it conducts. The opinions expressed in these interviews do not reflect the opinions of the Investing News Network and do not constitute investment advice. All readers are encouraged to perform their own due diligence.