1. Chemical-grade lithium refining, not the ore
Most investors track spodumene and brine output. The tighter bottleneck is conversion into battery-grade lithium hydroxide or carbonate — a handful of chemical plants with long qualification cycles. Ore without refining capacity does not charge cars.
2. Cathode precursor (pCAM / CAM) capacity
NMC and LFP cathode active materials require specialized precursor plants. Expanding mines without matching cathode capacity creates inventory and pricing distortions that show up months later in cell makers.
3. Battery-grade graphite anodes
Natural and synthetic graphite for anodes remains highly concentrated. Coating, spheroidization, and purification are capital-intensive steps with few qualified suppliers — often overlooked versus lithium headlines.
4. Separators and electrolyte solvents
Thin polymer separators and high-purity solvents have limited dual-sourcing. A fire, export control, or quality fail at one plant can idle multiple gigafactories that share a bill of materials.
5. Cell assembly tooling & formation equipment
Electrode coating lines, formation racks, and dry-room systems have multi-year lead times. Capex bottlenecks can delay nameplate capacity even when materials are available.