Investors are betting that the world’s shift towards electric vehicles and renewable energy will create a supercycle in the price of metals essential for building batteries.
Shares in the Global Lithium and Battery ETF have risen about 170 per cent over the past year, while producers of lithium, a battery metal, have raised more than $2bn from investors during the past few months. Some of the most prominent names in the mining industry, such as Mick Davis and billionaire Robert Friedland, have also launched funds to invest in the sector.
The surge in investor interest reflects the growing realisation that government pledges to reach net zero emissions of greenhouse gases by the middle of this century will demand huge quantities of battery metals.