Despite the lofty expectations for demand from electric vehicles, where lithium-ion batteries dominate, prices for the raw material are now languishing at two-year lows. Free-on board prices of lithium carbonate from South American brine ponds are down 31 percent over the past year to average $10,375 a tonne in September, according to Benchmark Mineral Intelligence data. At the same time, ex-works prices in China have collapsed from a peak of $24,750 in March last year to below South America export prices. Producers in Australia now get $325…
