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Last Update: 10/26/2026 at 11:33 PM EST
Critical Minerals and the Energy Transition
Coverage from Dollars & Sense, AZoM, and others
Lithium, cobalt, copper, nickel, graphite, and rare earth elements are essential to electric vehicles, batteries, solar panels, wind turbines, and parts of the digital economy.
Mining and refining are concentrated across a limited number of countries, while new projects can take many years to reach production, creating supply and geopolitical vulnerabilities. The transition also brings significant local costs: water depletion and contamination in places such as Chile’s Salar de Atacama, and pollution and health concerns near cobalt and copper operations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The central policy challenge is how to secure minerals while improving local value creation, human-rights protections, environmental oversight, recycling, and community participation.
Key Articles5 of 83 articles
If you read one thing
It introduces the central trade-off between rising mineral demand, environmental and community harms, and the need for safeguards.
Best explainer
It clarifies how clean-energy technologies fit into wider mineral demand and how recycling and design choices could affect future mining needs.
The evidence
It provides concrete evidence of persistent refining concentration and the supply-chain risks that diversification efforts seek to address.
The evidence
It quantifies mining-related water pressures, including the share of critical-mineral sites in highly stressed areas.
The local angle
It shows how African mineral-rich countries are pursuing processing and regional cooperation to capture more value from supply chains.
Key Issues
Concentrated supply is difficult to diversify
Mining, refining, and downstream manufacturing remain concentrated in a limited number of countries and producers, leaving supply chains exposed to disruption and trade restrictions. Long project lead times and projected shortfalls constrain how quickly alternatives can come online, even as governments and companies pursue diversification.
Water and community impacts constrain mining
Mineral extraction can intensify water stress, pollution, and risks to local livelihoods and health, especially in vulnerable regions. Evidence includes high water stress at a share of global extraction sites and local disputes over water use, environmental review, and community participation.
Resource-rich regions seek more local value
Many African countries continue to export minerals raw or lightly processed, while higher-value refining and manufacturing remain concentrated elsewhere. Regional cooperation and domestic processing are promoted as routes to stronger bargaining power and local benefits, but capacity and infrastructure remain constraints.
Key Numbers
nearly 20 years
time to develop new capacity in existing projects
“Fewer than 1% of mineral exploration projects reach production, and developing new capacity in existing projects can take nearly 20 years.”
67% percent
world nickel ore production from Indonesia
“Supply chains are geographically concentrated: Indonesia produces 67% of the world’s nickel ore, while China accounts for more than half of global refining capacity for various metals.”
Fewer than 1% percent
mineral exploration projects reaching production
“Fewer than 1% of mineral exploration projects reach production, and developing new capacity in existing projects can take nearly 20 years.”
more than half
global refining capacity for various metals accounted for by China
“Supply chains are geographically concentrated: Indonesia produces 67% of the world’s nickel ore, while China accounts for more than half of global refining capacity for various metals.”
70% to 95% percent
China’s share of global processing of lithium, cobalt, phosphate, manganese and graphite
“The IEA said China processed 70% to 95% of global lithium, cobalt, phosphate, manganese and graphite in 2025, produced 98% of lithium iron phosphate cathode materials and manufactured 80% of global battery cells.”
Looking Back
256 Day Timeline
Jan 22
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May 28
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Sep 24
The Story So Far
No material change
No new-member articles were supplied, so there is no evidence of a material change since the prior state.
Previously
Demand for critical minerals used in clean-energy technologies, digital infrastructure, and other industries is drawing attention to the environmental costs and vulnerabilities of their supply chains. Mining can strain water supplies and expose nearby communities to pollution, while extraction and refining are concentrated in a limited number of countries. Governments and producers are pursuing more secure or locally processed supplies, raising questions about how to balance access to minerals with environmental safeguards and local benefits.
All Articles83 articles
Important
China is expanding influence over copper processing and clean-energy industries as electrification increases demand across global vehicle, power, and infrastructure markets.
8/29/2026 • Clean Energy & Emissions • General
Researchers A. de Bortoli, M. Pellan, and colleagues reported in a 2026 SSRN preprint that net-zero metal burdens remain far below avoided carbon damage globally.
8/18/2026 • Clean Energy & Emissions • General
Northwestern University researchers project water shortages for most proposed U.S. lithium mines from 2040 to 2060, especially in the Salton Sea region and Nevada.
5/28/2026 • Clean Energy & Emissions • General
Coface warned that copper, nickel and aluminium shortages could raise prices and disrupt supply chains globally by 2035.
9/16/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
Zimbabwean communities in Mutare and Buhera are challenging lithium mining impacts and seeking consultation, protections and remedies as battery-mineral production expands.
9/15/2026 • People & Justice • General
A modeling study of U.S. lithium mining through mid-century projects that climate-driven water scarcity could limit mine water availability and increase import dependence.
5/28/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
The Bureau of Land Management approved exploratory lithium drilling in December at the McDermitt Caldera on the Oregon-Nevada border, prompting environmental groups to challenge the review.
9/27/2026 • Policy, Politics & Governance • General
China leads global clean-energy manufacturing in the 2020s, while governments and companies confront concentrated mineral supply chains and associated labor and environmental risks across China, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Indonesia.
9/25/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
The International Energy Agency reported in 2026 that China still dominated critical-mineral refining, while U.S. projects sought supply-chain diversification across domestic facilities and international partnerships.
9/14/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
The Oakland Institute found in 2024 that clean-energy technologies and electric vehicles represented 26% of six-mineral demand globally, while other industries accounted for most consumption.
9/6/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
Investigators built a global lithium mining project dataset, then mapped U.S. sites to CDC Social Vulnerability Index and Indigenous lands to evaluate potential community impacts.
5/3/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
A World Bank-commissioned study found that African countries remained marginal in green-technology value chains, based on 2017-2023 patent and trade data across Africa.
9/27/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
India led by Manohar Lal addressed energy security, permitting, critical minerals, and climate-related infrastructure cooperation at the G20 ministerial meeting in Houston, United States.
9/18/2026 • Policy, Politics & Governance • General
The United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Health reported that critical-mineral mining in regions including the Lithium Triangle is intensifying water insecurity and social inequities.
9/16/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Nigerian government, research and civil-society stakeholders urged domestic critical-mineral processing during a strategic convening in Abuja to expand energy-transition jobs and industrial value.
9/4/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
China dominates rare earth solvent-extraction separation capacity, and 2025 export controls on terbium, dysprosium, and yttrium raise Western scale-up challenges.
6/13/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
UNU-INWEH led a report in 2024 warning that lithium and cobalt mining for clean energy can intensify water insecurity, health harms, and inequality in mining regions.
4/30/2026 • People & Justice • General
Mining financier Robert Friedland warns in a Rare Earth Exchanges article that widespread electrification with heat pumps and AI data centers could overwhelm aging US and global grids.
1/24/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
On September 18, 2026, selected analyses examined renewable growth, digital electricity demand, European mineral exploration, power-grid pressures, and reduced United States electric-vehicle support across China, Europe, and the United States.
9/18/2026 • Clean Energy & Emissions • General
India approved the National Critical Mineral Mission in January 2025 to strengthen mineral extraction, processing and manufacturing for clean-energy technologies through 2030-31.
9/11/2026 • Clean Energy & Emissions • General
Nigerian policymakers, researchers and industry stakeholders urged domestic critical-minerals processing and manufacturing at a convening in Nigeria to support energy-transition jobs and economic diversification.
9/4/2026 • Clean Energy & Emissions • General
In a 2026 commentary, the Oakland Institute argued that critical-mineral mining expansion serves artificial intelligence, military, and other industries as well as clean-energy technologies, with harms concentrated in Global South communities.
9/3/2026 • Clean Energy & Emissions • General
In May, Donald Trump and Xi Jinping paused escalating confrontation during bilateral talks, but United States-China disputes over minerals, semiconductors and clean-technology supply chains remained unresolved.
8/31/2026 • Clean Energy & Emissions • General
Researchers and firms pursue direct lithium extraction from geothermal brines near Salton Sea, Imperial County, California in 2026 to supply lithium carbonate for EVs and grid storage.
2/11/2026 • Clean Energy & Emissions • General
The Oakland Institute, in its new report, warns that expanding critical-mineral mining in African countries could intensify land, water, livelihood and energy-access inequalities.
8/31/2026 • People & Justice • General
Fern and NGO partners propose criteria for global mining no-go zones to protect carbon-rich ecosystems and Indigenous rights across Brazil, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Finland, and the EU.
6/29/2026 • Policy, Politics & Governance • General
Mongabay reported that USAspending data show the Pentagon awarded about $621 million in grants for defense-critical minerals from 2015 to 2025 amid Indigenous consultation disputes in Alaska and Nevada.
6/18/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
UN and UNU-INWEH warnings highlight critical mineral extraction risks as renewable and EV deployment accelerates demand and governance gaps persist.
5/17/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
In Washington DC on February 5, 2026, the United States urged 54 countries and the European Union to form a critical minerals trading bloc to curb China's dominance.
2/5/2026 • Policy, Politics & Governance • General
Inside Climate News reports that Canada, under Prime Minister Mark Carney, is expanding investor state dispute protections for its extractive industries in 2020s trade and investment agreements worldwide.
1/22/2026 • Policy, Politics & Governance • General
Stanford Natural Capital Alliance researchers presented a Mongolia mining water-risk analysis at UNCCD COP17 in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, in the 2020s.
9/17/2026 • Adaptation & Resilience • General
Interesting
The United Nations, through a mechanism announced by Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, will provide technical and capacity-building support to Nigeria, Guinea, Indonesia, Madagascar, Zambia and Zimbabwe to strengthen responsible mineral value chains.
9/24/2026 • Policy, Politics & Governance • General
At a New Delhi seminar, India's Coal and Mines Minister G Kishan Reddy said the government will address recycling industry demands and prepare incentives for critical-mineral recovery.
9/21/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
At a FICCI conference in India, Gobardhan Das and industry leaders called for coordinated technology adoption to strengthen critical-mineral value chains for manufacturing and the energy transition.
9/18/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
US and Chinese strategies are competing over African critical-mineral supply chains and clean-technology manufacturing, particularly around Congo, the Lobito Corridor, and Red Sea routes.
9/16/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
Cameco and MP Materials reported contrasting fiscal 2025 results as investors compared uranium and rare-earth exposure to electrification and energy security in Canada and the United States.
9/10/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
Lohum dispatched its first lithium ore from mining assets in Matabeleland South Province, Zimbabwe, launching the Indian company's upstream battery-material operations.
9/9/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
India and Myanmar expanded critical-mineral cooperation in June 2026 in New Delhi to improve Indian access to rare earths amid Chinese export controls and severe frontier logistics constraints.
9/8/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
RMI evaluates costs and benefits of IRMA responsible mining standards for battery-material supply chains amid rising critical-mineral demand.
5/7/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
In 2026, the IEA reports rapid EV sales growth while debates over cobalt-linked battery supply chains focus on mining harms and shifting battery chemistries.
6/29/2026 • Clean Energy & Emissions • General
Trade ministers in Yaounde, Cameroon discussed WTO reform alongside critical mineral deals as the US Project Vault stockpiles minerals for the clean energy transition.
4/7/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
Hugh Miller and researchers call for IEA-coordinated rules on critical-mineral stockpiling after reserve building risks price spikes.
6/5/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
Copper prices reached a record in 2020s markets as United States tariff expectations, declining mine output, and electrification demand tightened global supply.
9/12/2026 • Clean Energy & Emissions • General
Energy-transition manufacturers and mining communities face rising mineral demand and environmental risks worldwide as electric vehicles and renewable infrastructure expand during the 2020s.
8/4/2026 • Clean Energy & Emissions • General
Greenpeace International releases a report on pathways for a 1.5C aligned energy transition with less minerals in Amsterdam, Netherlands in 2026.
3/9/2026 • Clean Energy & Emissions • General
Greenpeace International and Institute for Sustainable Futures analyze mineral demand pathways worldwide from 2024 to 2050.
3/6/2026 • Clean Energy & Emissions • General
Report No.305 links critical-mineral supply-chain growth in the Amazon Basin to higher risks of criminalized mining and Indigenous harms across Brazil, Colombia, Peru, and Venezuela.
6/4/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
Chinese mining companies showcased digital systems, clean-energy applications and efficient processing equipment at the September 10-12, 2026 China Mining Conference in Tianjin to reduce mining costs and environmental impacts.
9/13/2026 • Clean Energy & Emissions • General
Berkshire Hathaway Energy and Occidental Petroleum reported lithium-extraction milestones from geothermal brines in California’s Imperial Valley, building on Simbol Materials technology.
6/26/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
Berkshire Hathaway Energy and Occidental Petroleum reported lithium extraction milestones from geothermal brines in California's Imperial Valley on Monday, linked to Simbol Materials technology.
6/26/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
A climate-energy analysis argues clean transition deployment can increase critical-mineral bottlenecks and environmental risks, and proposes polymer-based energy technologies.
5/31/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
Researchers at the United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Health reported water depletion and health harms from lithium, cobalt, copper, and rare earth mining across multiple countries, urging enforceable governance.
4/29/2026 • Climate Science & Impacts • General
Sweden granted a 25-year Norra Kärr mining license in southern Sweden to Leading Edge Materials for heavy rare earth extraction despite prior environmental objections.
7/1/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer of WGEO urged critical-minerals investment and governance for clean-energy net-zero progress at London Climate Action Week 2026.
6/28/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
TESS and UNCTAD convened an international expert group on 11 June 2026 to develop critical-mineral trade cooperation pathways for the clean energy transition.
6/17/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
ADB and UNIDO will discuss responsible critical-mineral supply chains for clean-energy manufacturing at ADB Headquarters in Manila on 10 June 2026.
6/10/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
Researchers linked critical minerals mining to water depletion, pollution, and health and food system harm in mining regions without stronger supply-chain monitoring and regulation.
5/3/2026 • People & Justice • General
Imperial County proposed Lithium Valley near the Salton Sea in California, but nonprofit lawsuits and water-and-power disputes are slowing plans and fueling local equity concerns.
6/3/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
The EU-funded FutuRaM project reported that improved recycling of batteries, vehicles, and electronics across Europe could supply up to 56% of critical mineral demand by 2050.
5/27/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
Native leaders in South Dakota, Nevada, and Arizona report water and sacred-site impacts as the U.S. accelerates lithium mining for electric vehicle batteries through faster permitting and federal support.
5/3/2026 • People & Justice • General
UNU-INWEH describes water and pollution harms from critical-mineral extraction supporting electric vehicles and digital infrastructure, urging stronger standards and reporting.
5/1/2026 • People & Justice • General
The International Accountability Project reported in 2025 that development bank-backed transition-minerals projects approved globally since 2023 frequently threaten communities, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa.
9/3/2026 • Economy, Business & Innovation • General
A CRM-geothermal factsheet explains how UNFC supports joint assessment of geothermal energy and lithium extraction from geothermal brines using reservoir-dependent modelling.
7/7/2026 • Clean Energy & Emissions • General
The US Energy Security Index reports shale-era gains in oil and gas reliability while critical mineral and uranium dependencies increasingly raise energy security risk amid Persian Gulf conflict.
5/19/2026 • Clean Energy & Emissions • General
AEM, Conifer, and Niron Magnetics in the UK, US, and India scale rare-earth-free EV motor designs amid China-controlled rare earth processing concentration.
7/1/2026 • Clean Energy & Emissions • General
A 2025 Transition Mineral Tracker reported increased allegations of environmental and human rights abuses at mining operations tied to clean energy minerals across South America and Africa.
6/29/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
Business and Human Rights Centre reported 329 2025 allegations of abuses tied to transition minerals, with the sharpest increases in Africa, especially Zambia and the DRC.
6/26/2026 • People & Justice • General
University of Michigan researchers map 28 North American rare earth deposits and estimate rising demand through 2040 for clean-energy magnet supply.
6/21/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
University of Michigan researchers estimate North America has sufficient rare earth deposits to support clean energy supply chains amid rising global demand.
6/16/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
Amnesty International links increased critical mineral extraction for electric vehicles, renewables, and AI data centers to human rights and environmental abuses across multiple countries.
6/10/2026 • People & Justice • General
UNU-INWEH researchers report rising critical-minerals demand increases water depletion, toxic waste, and health risks in major mining regions such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo and South America's Lithium Triangle.
5/17/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
UNU-INWEH released an investigation in the 2020s linking critical mineral extraction for solar and battery supply chains to freshwater depletion, contamination, and health risks in the Democratic Republic of Congo and other mining regions.
4/30/2026 • People & Justice • General
At a New Delhi summit in 2025, Energy and Resources Institute and Ashoka Center discussions assessed critical-minerals bottlenecks for India's net-zero by 2070, citing lithium and copper supply scale needs and recycling gaps.
3/26/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
Hindustan Power secured a preferred-bidder Letter of Intent to explore the Padhar PGE critical-minerals block in Madhya Pradesh after a Union Ministry of Mines forward e-auction.
3/24/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
Business and Human Rights Centre reported 148 transition-minerals abuse allegations in 2025 involving Chinese-backed projects, with Indonesia the highest-impact location.
7/22/2026 • People & Justice • General
Minnesota DNR takes public input through Sept. 14 on the Tamarack Mine scoping document as tribes and environmental advocates raise water and wild rice pollution risks.
7/15/2026 • Policy, Politics & Governance • General
Forum Energii and Green Deal Ukraïna report that Ukraine graphite projects outside Balakhivka could help the EU diversify battery-grade supplies despite war-caused mining disruptions.
7/1/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
UNU-INWEH in 2024 warned that lithium and cobalt extraction for batteries and microchips is depleting water and contaminating drinking sources in Congo, Bolivia, and Chile.
4/29/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
In Imperial Valley, California, companies pursuing geothermal-brine lithium extraction face technical scaling limits and water and environmental disputes as federal and market support weakens.
3/31/2026 • Markets & Industry & Innovation • General
Critical minerals processing concentration in China, highlighted by IEA Global Critical Minerals Outlook 2025, is framed as a chokepoint for AI, defense, and energy transition supply.
7/11/2026 • Clean Energy & Emissions • General
Additional
European Commission plans a Water Framework Directive revision during fast-tracked permitting for critical raw materials mines, while analyses link many projects to drying and drought-prone regions in Spain, Portugal, and Greece.
6/20/2026 • Adaptation & Resilience • General
Cameco reported stronger fiscal 2025 financial results than USA Rare Earth as investors compared nuclear-power exposure with emerging rare-earth supply-chain development.
9/15/2026 • Economy, Business & Innovation • General
Mineral economics research estimates USD 2.1 trillion in 2024-2050 mining investment needs for net-zero minerals, citing sharp graphite and lithium demand growth and ESG-linked financing risks.
6/23/2026 • Economy, Business & Innovation • General