Battery Cost Index
Providing greater transparency into the cost of key Li-ion cell components
Volatile battery raw material prices, varying battery chemistries and differing manufacturing costs result in cell prices that appear opaque and subjective. This makes it difficult for market participants to budget effectively, anticipate price changes, bring transparency to transactions and effectively track cost changes over time.
The Fastmarkets Battery Cost Index is an easy-to-use cost model for total cell costs, including cost breakdown of active anode material (AAM), cathode active material (CAM), separator, electrolyte, other materials, energy, labor and operational costs across multiple chemistries and geographies. The Fastmarkets Battery Cost Index provides historical costs, changes over time and cell cost forecasts.
Key features of the Battery Cost Index
- Material and production costs for NMC (111, 532, 622, 811) and LFP
- Geographical cell cost summaries for China, South Korea, Germany and the United States
- Cell cost forecasts out to 2033
- Market-leading Fastmarkets price data to provide real-time CAM costs
- Written commentary on key drivers impacting cost and cost changes
- Historic monthly cell costs

Our battery cost index breaks down the cost, historical and forecast,
for different cell types and chemistries
We buy cathode material; this is a valuable tool to help us to understand how suppliers cost the cathodes, this can help us to have more informed negotiations.
Actionable insights and market intel on the battery materials market and how the cost of raw materials is impacting the cost of electric vehicles
Battery recyclers Ecobat, Huayou Cobalt and SungEel HiTech are planning large capacity additions in Europe despite continued industry headwinds, Fastmarkets heard at the GDMMC conference in The Hague on November 25-26.
The re-election of Donald Trump for a second term as US president has created uncertainty about the ability of Chinese carmakers to continue to manufacture and export auto components into Mexico to be fully assembled and then exported to the US.
Unlike most other commodities, cobalt is primarily a by-product – with 60% derived from copper and 38% from nickel – so how will changes in those markets change the picture for cobalt in the coming months following a year of price weakness and oversupply in 2024?
Electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers have been reaching upstream to producers, beyond their agreements with their battery manufacturing partners, to secure North American supply for their production, battery materials and technology company Novonix’s chief executive officer Chris Burns told Fastmarkets
POSCO Pilbara Lithium Solution (PPLS) will complete construction of Train 2 at its lithium hydroxide monohydrate conversion facility in Gwangyang, South Korea, by early December 2024, a company source told Fastmarkets, with delivery of the first batch of lithium hydroxide expected within two months from then.
China’s electric vehicle (EV) and battery industry participants expect more uncertainty under a second Donald Trump presidency amid the president-elect’s intention to scale back the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and pursue expanded protectionist trade policies, sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday November 7
The market for silicon anodes is likely to develop rapidly, independently of growth in the ex-China graphite supply chain, according to the chief executive officer of a leading silicon anode producer.
It was already getting more difficult to source nickel qualified as compliant to the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Under a future Donald Trump administration, it’s likely to get harder still, in the short-term at least.
India should invest to avoid its dependance on imports for almost 100% of its cobalt, lithium and nickel requirements, according to a report by the think tank Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA). But slow government action and a focus on short-term costs keep India reliant on imported critical minerals, sources told Fastmarkets.
Keep on top of volatility with battery materials news and intel
Trade on market-reflective prices
Access critical short- and long-term forecasts in a new generation of energy markets
Gain a competitive edge in the emerging battery recycling market
Battery raw materials events give you a front-row seat to one of the most dynamic and critical markets in today’s economy
Enable risk management using futures contracts