Electric Vehicles and the Rising Copper Demand: A Comprehensive Analysis by Goldman Sachs

2023-07-06 20:12:25

Goldman Sachs said the growing use of electric vehicles (EVs) was a “key pillar of the copper bull story,” forecasting the sector’s copper demand would top 1 million tonnes this year, rising to 1.5 million by 2025.

“Due to its highly conductive and ductile nature, copper is an ideal candidate for the transformation and transmission of electrical energy in electric vehicles,” the bank said in a note dated Wednesday.

Last year, EV production accounted for around two-thirds of the increase in global copper demand, and these cars are likely to account for around 27% of additional copper consumption over the next decade, he said.

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Goldman detailed that its analysts were optimistic about that class of cars, anticipating “strong sales in China, driven by lower prices and a high demand for EVs that has been accumulating during the rest of 2023.”

Benchmark copper prices on the London Metal Exchange (LME) lost 7.5% in the second quarter of 2023 due to a slow recovery in demand in China and concerns about global economic growth.

However, the use of copper in EVs could decline in the long term, as the amount of the metal used per electric vehicle could fall to 65kg per unit in 2030, from 73kg in 2022, according to the bank.

Source: Archyde.com