The Electric: How China's Massive Over-Production of Cathodes Is Driving Down Battery Costs

Even as large inventories piled up through 2023, Chinese makers of cathodes for electric vehicles continued to run their factories at high volume, ending the year with a surplus of some 2.5 million EVs’ worth of iron-based electrodes, according to CRU Group, a U.K.-based metals research firm. The overproduction—which exceeded demand by 54%—helps to explain a more than yearlong 81% plunge in lithium prices and reflects China’s still-growing dominance in the industry.