Are critical minerals the Achilles heel of the energy transition?

Climate change deniers will tell you that a zero emissions economy is a pipe dream. They say there's not enough lithium for all the batteries we'll need, that mining rare earths is destroying the environment and that we can’t get cobalt without sending children down mines. So, is the energy transition doomed before it even begins?

In this video, we're going to explore the challenges and opportunities associated with these minerals, and we'll ask the tough questions that will need answers if we’re going to pull off the energy transition.

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Bookmarks:
00:00 Intro
00:41 What does "critical minerals" mean?
03:27 Lithium
04:48 Rare earth elements
07:44 Cobalt
09:14 Tungsten, high purity alumina, graphite
09:52 How fast can we bring on more mineral supply?
10:51 Supply chain shocks
12:40 IRA and other critical minerals policies
13:59 Is the critical minerals problem overhyped?
14:50 Outro

Sources:
Critical minerals lists
https://www.industry.gov.au/publications/australias-critical-minerals-list
https://www.usgs.gov/news/national-news-release/us-geological-survey-releases-2022-list-critical-minerals
https://single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu/sectors/raw-materials/areas-specific-interest/critical-raw-materials_en
https://mines.gov.in/admin/storage/app/uploads/649d4212cceb01688027666.pdf

Lithium video with Alex Grant
https://youtu.be/DAS2og74Fuc

IEA Critical Minerals
https://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics/data-tools/critical-minerals-data-explorer
https://www.iea.org/reports/the-role-of-critical-minerals-in-clean-energy-transitions/executive-summary

The Engineering with Rosie team is:
Rosemary Barnes: Presenter, producer, writer
Javi Diez: Editor https://www.linkedin.com/in/javierdiezsuarez/
Fatini Nur: Research and production assistant https://www.linkedin.com/in/fatinin