Each week our High Voltage column wraps all the news driving ASX battery metals stocks with exposure to lithium, cobalt, graphite, manganese and vanadium.

 

INDUSTRY FOCUS

More sectors are electrifying as batteries become cheaper, according to a new report from Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF).

Battery prices, which were above $1,100 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) in 2010, have fallen 87 per cent to $156/kWh on average in 2019.

By 2023, average prices will be close to $100/kWh, according to the latest forecast from BNEF.

$100/kWh is important – this is the price commonly thought to be the point where EVs will start to reach price parity with internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles.

The path to achieving $100/kWh by 2024 looks promising says BNEF, “even if there will undoubtedly be hiccups along the way”.

(Some carmakers like Tesla are reportedly producing at the $US100/kWh mark already.)

These falling costs are making electrification of commercial vehicles like delivery vans “increasingly attractive”.

BNEF doesn’t mention larger vehicles, like semis – but they should because check this out:


or this:

 

 

Maybe battery-hungry electric semis could be attractive sooner rather than later, physically and financially.

In 2019, battery cost reductions are thanks to increased order sizes, growth in EV sales and the continued penetration of high energy density cathodes, BNEF says.

Interestingly, low raw materials prices – for graphite, lithium and cobalt — throughout 2019 don’t rate a mention.

And it will be the introduction of new pack designs, changing supply chains, and falling manufacturing costs that will drive prices down in the near term.

This emerging industry will get bigger, better, and more efficient in other words.

“According to our forecasts, by 2030 the battery market will be worth $US116 billion annually, and this doesn’t include investment in the supply chain,” BNEF senior analyst James Frith says.

“However, as cell and pack prices are falling, purchasers will get more value for their money than they do today.”

READ MORE:

VW and Tesla’s big investments will spark the 2020’s EV offensive

Lithium prices (may) have hit rock bottom – next, the upswing

 

SMALL CAP SPOTLIGHT

Of the companies on our list, 69 lost ground, 39 were ahead and 41 were steady.

Companies start winding down this time of year – a year many would like to forget — so it wasn’t a big news week for our local troupe of battered battery metals players.

Lithium/iron ore play Reedy Lagoon (ASX:RLC), DRC-based cobalt explorer Taruga Minerals (ASX:TAR), and troubled graphite miner Syrah Resources (ASX:SYR) all made up some ground this week, gaining 33 per cent, 31 per cent and 23 per cent, respectively.

Still — at 42.5c the Syrah share price is a painfully long way from that heady, mid-2016 peak of ~$6.40.

Ouch.

$2.5m market cap ScandiVanadium (ASX:SVD), which is finally getting the wheels turning on its Skane vanadium project in Sweden, got a nice 17 per cent bump this week.

And Madagascan graphite play BlackEarth Minerals (ASX:BEM) continues to progress its Maniry project despite a subdued pricing environment.

Last week, investors rewarded a positive update on product testing and offtake discussions with a 13 per cent share price boost.

BlackEarth says that the world’s largest producer of expanded graphite products — a growing market — has reported excellent quality and expansion rates from testing on BEM’s coarse flake graphite samples.

“This feedback provides further validation that BlackEarth’s graphite is suitable for sale as a high value product to the rapidly growing expandable graphite market,” the company says.

READ: Demand for Madagascan large flake graphite is red-hot

Here’s a table of ASX battery metal stocks with exposure to lithium, cobalt, graphite, manganese and vanadium>>>

Scroll or swipe to reveal table. Click headings to sort. Best viewed on a laptop:

Code Name 1 Week Return % 1 Year Return % Share Price [Monday Intraday] Market Cap
RLC REEDY LAGOON 33 -43 0.004 $ 1,206,815.13
THR THOR MINING 33 -70 0.008 $ 10,766,469.00
TAR TARUGA MINERALS 31 -61 0.012 $ 3,896,213.75
SYR SYRAH RESOURCES 23 -72 0.425 $ 179,869,488.00
SYA SAYONA MINING 22 -52 0.012 $ 22,460,028.00
POW PROTEAN ENERGY 20 -71 0.006 $ 1,868,623.50
WML WOOMERA MINING 19 -72 0.019 $ 2,148,671.50
JRL JINDALEE RESOURCES 18 22 0.3 $ 11,548,276.00
BOA BOADICEA RESOURCES 17 80 0.21 $ 13,898,936.00
AZI ALTA ZINC 17 54 0.008 $ 15,205,041.00
SVD SCANDIVANADIUM 17 -65 0.007 $ 2,463,062.75
BPL BROKEN HILL PROSPECTING 14 -27 0.024 $ 3,986,001.50
AMD ARROW MINERALS 14 -38 0.008 $ 6,701,705.50
BEM BLACKEARTH MINERALS 13 -32 0.059 $ 6,364,709.00
NWC NEW WORLD COBALT 13 -26 0.019 $ 12,224,624.00
MCT METALICITY 13 -72 0.0045 $ 2,892,839.75
GBE GLOBE METALS AND MINING 12 6 0.019 $ 7,454,758.00
GNM GREAT NORTHERN MINERALS 11 -75 0.01 $ 3,153,139.75
AVL AUSTRALIAN VANADIUM 10 -66 0.01 $ 25,528,020.00
LI3 LITHIUM CONSOLIDATED 10 -43 0.034 $ 4,260,515.50
MRR MINREX RESOURCES 9 -40 0.012 $ 1,150,532.75
BSX BLACKSTONE MINERALS 8 18 0.135 $ 23,966,434.00
SRK STRIKE RESOURCES 8 4 0.054 $ 8,690,982.00
FEL FE 8 -18 0.014 $ 6,841,822.50
AUZ AUSTRALIAN MINES 7 -61 0.017 $ 55,115,880.00
LIT LITHIUM AUSTRALIA 6 -62 0.039 $ 18,165,242.00
SEI SPECIALITY METALS INTERNATIONAL 4 344 0.054 $ 53,067,400.00
AXE ARCHER MATERIALS 4 99 0.13 $ 25,621,932.00
4CE FORCE COMMODITIES 4 -19 0.015 $ 7,807,166.50
HAV HAVILAH RESOURCES 3 -48 0.093 $ 23,456,970.00
NVA NOVA MINERALS 3 55 0.036 $ 31,689,162.00
CHN CHALICE GOLD MINES 3 46 0.175 $ 46,591,584.00
AVZ AVZ MINERALS 2 -46 0.045 $ 108,294,976.00
MZZ MATADOR MINING 2 18 0.26 $ 25,716,290.00
BUX BUXTON RESOURCES 1 -45 0.072 $ 9,659,936.00
TLG TALGA RESOURCES 1 21 0.475 $ 104,441,984.00
HRZ HORIZON MINERALS 1 -32 0.097 $ 41,941,568.00
OMH OM HOLDINGS 1 -63 0.5 $ 361,925,440.00
ARL ARDEA RESOURCES 1 23 0.62 $ 70,380,264.00
LCD LATITUDE CONSOLIDATED 0 -19 0.013 $ 3,577,327.00
TKL TRAKA RESOURCES 0 -65 0.008 $ 3,203,703.75
SI6 SIX SIGMA METALS 0 -20 0.004 $ 1,935,009.50
AEE AURA ENERGY 0 -74 0.005 $ 6,619,703.00
SUH SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE MINING 0 -40 0.027 $ 2,485,875.75
LRS LATIN RESOURCES 0 -87 0.01 $ 1,556,991.25
PLL PIEDMONT LITHIUM 0 -9 0.11 $ 89,691,840.00
BDI BLINA MINERALS 0 0 0.001 $ 5,454,882.50
MEI METEORIC RESOURCES 0 264 0.052 $ 56,083,992.00
JMS JUPITER MINES 0 15 0.25 $ 489,747,744.00
DTMDA DART MINING 0 -29 0.1 $ 5,351,880.50
HXG HEXAGON ENERGY MATERIALS 0 -48 0.07 $ 20,177,904.00
WCN WHITE CLIFF MINERALS 0 -52 0.005 $ 2,351,749.50
NZC NZURI COPPER 0 11 0.28 $ 88,771,648.00
EMH EUROPEAN METALS 0 -14 0.31 $ 45,242,668.00
HIP HIPO RESOURCES 0 -6 0.017 $ 6,570,678.00
ANW AUS TIN MINING 0 -88 0.002 $ 5,090,103.50
PM1 PURE MINERALS 0 38 0.018 $ 8,481,752.00
PSM PENINSULA MINES 0 -60 0.002 $ 2,033,744.13
PNN PEPINNINI LITHIUM 0 -65 0.002 $ 2,514,255.00
IEC INTRA ENERGY 0 -45 0.006 $ 2,326,344.25
CFE CAPE LAMBERT RESOURCES 0 -79 0.004 $ 5,522,370.00
ADV ARDIDEN 0 -40 0.003 $ 5,071,560.50
PIO PIONEER RESOURCES 0 -13 0.013 $ 19,613,864.00
MLS METALS AUSTRALIA 0 -63 0.001 $ 3,207,352.75
MTB MOUNT BURGESS MINING 0 -40 0.003 $ 1,596,388.13
AYR ALLOY RESOURCES 0 -57 0.002 $ 3,133,016.00
ZNC ZENITH MINERALS 0 -24 0.054 $ 13,141,442.00
TON TRITON MINERALS 0 -14 0.036 $ 33,376,974.00
LPD LEPIDICO 0 -5 0.016 $ 70,458,696.00
KOR KORAB RESOURCES 0 -42 0.015 $ 5,075,191.50
CLA CELSIUS RESOURCES 0 -76 0.014 $ 9,843,835.00
BAT BATTERY MINERALS 0 -74 0.006 $ 7,908,549.50
SRN SUREFIRE RESOURCES 0 -50 0.003 $ 1,884,460.88
HNR HANNANS 0 -31 0.009 $ 17,891,590.00
CZN CORAZON MINING 0 -60 0.002 $ 4,076,721.25
IDA INDIANA RESOURCES 0 -49 0.025 $ 4,587,367.50
RMX RED MOUNTAIN MINING 0 -14 0.006 $ 5,082,220.50
CUL CULLEN RESOURCES 0 -38 0.013 $ 2,463,042.75
JRV JERVOIS MINING 0 -12 0.19 $ 128,326,528.00
MIN MINERAL RESOURCES 0 12 15.68 $ 2,850,208,000.00
FGR FIRST GRAPHENE -2 -18 0.15 $ 66,460,812.00
TNG TNG -2 -5 0.093 $ 107,956,328.00
INR IONEER -3 3 0.19 $ 335,726,656.00
VMC VENUS METALS -3 24 0.19 $ 21,811,742.00
EUR EUROPEAN LITHIUM -4 -33 0.079 $ 50,394,236.00
TMT TECHNOLOGY METALS AUSTRALIA -4 -67 0.13 $ 11,382,042.00
DEV DEVEX RESOURCES -4 79 0.077 $ 14,086,867.00
GED GOLDEN DEEPS -4 -38 0.025 $ 6,943,098.50
PAN PANORAMIC RESOURCES -4 -3 0.35 $ 229,917,008.00
CAZ CAZALY RESOURCES -4 123 0.023 $ 7,614,492.00
CRL COMET RESOURCES -5 -30 0.022 $ 5,920,000.00
INF INFINITY LITHIUM -5 -9 0.065 $ 13,119,180.00
PGM PLATINA RESOURCES -5 -67 0.019 $ 6,199,244.50
NMT NEOMETALS -5 -10 0.19 $ 103,443,264.00
FFR FIREFLY RESOURCES -5 -82 0.053 $ 4,237,077.50
GME GME RESOURCES -5 -30 0.052 $ 26,324,632.00
GPX GRAPHEX MINING -6 -13 0.15 $ 17,162,810.00
MNS MAGNIS ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES -6 -67 0.1 $ 61,683,344.00
AJM ALTURA MINING -6 -70 0.057 $ 138,770,688.00
BKT BLACK ROCK MINING -6 50 0.049 $ 30,189,298.00
LPI LITHIUM POWER INTERNATIONAL -6 -6 0.24 $ 64,315,908.00
POS POSEIDON NICKEL -6 5 0.0455 $ 124,206,984.00
GLN GALAN LITHIUM -6 -43 0.155 $ 21,210,212.00
NXE NEW ENERGY MINERALS -6 -69 0.015 $ 2,293,431.75
SO4 SALT LAKE POTASH -6 59 0.75 $ 200,259,824.00
KSN KINGSTON RESOURCES -7 -22 0.14 $ 24,722,924.00
ASN ANSON RESOURCES -7 -61 0.027 $ 16,198,968.00
MLM METALLICA MINERALS -7 -54 0.013 $ 4,212,616.50
ORE OROCOBRE -7 -43 2.38 $ 617,560,256.00
COB COBALT BLUE -7 -40 0.135 $ 20,236,840.00
AML AEON METALS -8 -61 0.099 $ 67,406,976.00
VML VITAL METALS -8 50 0.012 $ 25,711,336.00
CHK COHIBA MINERALS -8 -29 0.012 $ 7,975,371.00
GXY GALAXY RESOURCES -8 -67 0.85 $ 352,152,224.00
DGR DGR GLOBAL -8 -44 0.078 $ 50,894,096.00
E25 ELEMENT 25 -8 -18 0.165 $ 15,185,325.00
VRC VOLT RESOURCES -8 -47 0.01 $ 17,876,244.00
PLS PILBARA MINERALS -8 -65 0.28 $ 622,637,184.00
WKT WALKABOUT RESOURCES -8 203 0.255 $ 81,980,600.00
AGY ARGOSY MINERALS -9 -58 0.075 $ 77,330,160.00
KAI KAIROS MINERALS -9 -58 0.01 $ 10,828,402.00
VR8 VANADIUM RESOURCES -9 -70 0.03 $ 11,228,323.00
CXO CORE LITHIUM -10 -48 0.032 $ 26,082,030.00
LKE LAKE RESOURCES -10 -72 0.027 $ 15,356,430.00
BYH BRYAH RESOURCES -11 -58 0.041 $ 4,079,201.25
CLQ CLEAN TEQ -11 -49 0.215 $ 153,024,336.00
KTA KRAKATOA RESOURCES -12 48 0.037 $ 6,650,000.00
SVM SOVEREIGN METALS -12 19 0.088 $ 31,627,084.00
MQR MARQUEE RESOURCES -12 -17 0.058 $ 3,689,386.00
CZR COZIRON RESOURCES -13 -42 0.007 $ 14,581,359.00
MLL MALI LITHIUM -13 -67 0.066 $ 22,849,064.00
PUR PURSUIT MINERALS -14 -82 0.006 $ 2,311,538.50
BSM BASS METALS -14 -60 0.007 $ 19,669,122.00
HWK HAWKSTONE MINING -14 -71 0.006 $ 5,707,226.00
DHR DARK HORSE RESOURCES -14 -40 0.003 $ 6,897,529.00
LTR LIONTOWN RESOURCES -15 251 0.081 $ 138,537,792.00
PSC PROSPECT RESOURCES -15 -54 0.11 $ 28,314,210.00
CNJ CONICO -15 -44 0.011 $ 4,228,380.50
BAR BARRA RESOURCES -16 -30 0.021 $ 13,719,862.00
LML LINCOLN MINERALS -17 -29 0.005 $ 2,874,918.50
EUC EUROPEAN COBALT -18 -61 0.019 $ 15,233,947.00
MTH MITHRIL RESOURCES -20 60 0.009 $ 3,923,113.75
ARE ARGONAUT RESOURCES -20 -82 0.004 $ 6,313,522.50
RML RESOLUTION MINERALS -21 -34 0.042 $ 4,572,412.00
KNL KIBARAN RESOURCES -21 -38 0.075 $ 23,344,022.00
RNU RENASCOR RESOURCES -21 -39 0.011 $ 12,753,668.00
RIE RIEDEL RESOURCES -23 -33 0.01 $ 4,180,697.00
MTC METALSTECH -30 37 0.035 $ 4,444,247.50
SBR SABRE RESOURCES -33 -71 0.002 $ 2,531,151.00
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