Turning lithium and graphite into chemicals pure enough to play the role of cathodes and anodes – perfect matrices in which lithium ions can nest – is such a complicated business that it represents an entire economic sector of its own. So supplying these battery companies you’ve probably never heard of is a panoply of cathode active materials firms you’ve almost certainly never heard of: Panasonic gets most of its materials from Sumitomo Metal Mining; CATL gets most of its materials from a company called Ronbay Technology.
