GM just secured enough cathode material for 5 million electric vehicles

General GM needs a lot ofCAM if it wants to become a carbon neutral company by the year 2040. What amount is enough? What about 950,000 tons of stuff?

According to GM, it has reached a deal with one of South Korea's premier battery making firms to lock down a supply of CAM. 40 percent of the total cost of a battery cell is made up of components like processed nickel and other materials.

Most of the EV battery cells are made with NCM. The most expensive material in the battery and mined under conditions that often violate human rights is called the "blood diamond of batteries." GM and other companies are rushing to create a battery that isn't made with cobalt. The mix of NCMA and aluminum will be added to the Ultium batteries.

Beginning in the second half of the year of 2022, the automaker will be supplied by the company. This will be enough battery material to power around 5 million electric vehicles, which should help the company in its quest to catch up toTesla.

In order to overtake Musk's company as the leading EV company in the world, GM plans to spend $30 billion on 30 new plug-in models over the next ten years. The EV market in the US is relatively small with only 6 percent of the market going to GM. According to CNBC, the company was out sold by legacy auto rivals.

GM is trying to get a better grasp on its supply chain in order to become more vertically integrated. The company has said it will spend over $4 billion on the construction of two battery factories in North America.

The localizing of a CAM production facility will be done by the end of the 20th century. The company plans to build a new factory in North America in a joint venture with Posco Chemical.

The company struck a deal to get the key ingredient in electric-car batteries from the US. It is building a 300,000- square-foot battery research facility in Michigan to help it realize its mission of building electric vehicle batteries that are more sustainable for the environment.