1 September 2025

Lithium: an ancient element with a small but critical role in batteries

Key insights from this briefing

How much lithium is typically contained in an electric-vehicle battery pack?

A typical EV battery pack contains around 10 kilograms of lithium, although the amount varies with pack size and chemistry. Most of the pack mass is made up of other active materials, metals and structural components, but lithium is fundamental to the electrochemistry that allows the battery to store and release energy efficiently.

Why is lithium strategically important despite representing a small share of battery mass?

Lithium has a unique electrochemical role in rechargeable batteries and therefore sits at the centre of electric vehicles and stationary energy storage. Its importance comes less from the kilograms used in each product than from the difficulty of replacing its function while maintaining the same combination of energy density, rechargeability and performance.

Excerpt from this briefing's Industry Insight

Lithium is unusual both scientifically and industrially. It is one of the few elements formed in the earliest stages of the universe and has long-standing medical uses, yet its modern strategic importance comes from rechargeable batteries. A typical electric-vehicle battery pack contains around 10 kilograms of lithium, depending on pack size and chemistry, a small share of total pack mass. Even in modest quantities, lithium is central to the electrochemistry that allows high-energy rechargeable storage to work. Its strategic value therefore reflects function rather than sheer volume used.

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