In November, C2ES hosted a roundtable discussion in Columbia, South Carolina on how to ensure the long-term vitality of the state’s growing battery and electric vehicle (EV) industries. South Carolina has seen significant recent momentum in the space, with new investments announced and facilities breaking ground for Redwood Materials’ battery recycling facility and Scout Motor’s EV Production Center. Employers with a long legacy in the state, like BMW, continue to expand their operations with a focus on the future of energy and mobility technology.  

These investments have added up to make South Carolina a leading state in the battery and mobility space. From January 2015 through February 2024, companies have announced investments in electric vehicles, EV batteries, battery components, and battery recycling totaling $13.6 billion. Investments in the industry are continuing throughout 2024 and beyond with an additional $2.2 billion in newly announced projects in the Palmetto State, including $500 million for stationary storage batteries and $1.5 billion in batteries for electric vehicles.    

South Carolina’s strong manufacturing base, advanced research institutions, and proven ability to attract new investments provide the necessary ingredients to continue building out a robust supply chain for developing and manufacturing advanced energy technologies like batteries for electric vehicles and stationary energy storage. Stakeholders in the state told a compelling story that federal policy makers should heed, underscoring the support that incentives like tax credits must play in order for the state to take advantage of the economic development opportunities these industries offer. 

Key themes from the roundtable included:  

Mitigating Investment Risk in Battery Supply Chains  

While the battery industry continues to grow, so does the demand for components of these technologies, such as critical minerals. However, there are key challenges along the supply chain that affect businesses from mineral refiners to battery pack assemblers.   

• Critical mineral markets are still considered immature, mostly consisting of opaque transactions conducted privately between buyers and sellers, leading to difficulties in determining accurate prices and price volatility for battery-grade critical minerals. 

• Most of the global critical mineral production and processing in these markets is concentrated among a few large actors in China and across Asia, creating bottlenecks and supply chain security risks throughout the entire supply chain.  

Recent events have demonstrated the challenges that supply chain concentration can create for the immature critical mineral market. Since 2023, lithium prices have dropped significantly, and companies have cited these crashing prices as the reasoning for cutbacks, plant closures, and delays for crucial supply chain projects in the United States and across the world. 

 Creating Circularity for the Battery Industry 

 While mining and sourcing critical minerals will be crucial in the short term, participants were interested in the long-term benefits that developing a robust battery recycling ecosystem can provide to the industry as a whole and to South Carolina specifically. Participants recommended several steps to take in the near term to build out the recycling industry: 

• Batteries will be easier to recycle if they are designed from the start for recyclability. Entrepreneurs will help drive crucial innovation in battery design. 

• Disposal of batteries needs to be made straightforward and convenient for consumers through education and outreach, clear labeling and disposal instructions, and investment in local collection infrastructure. 

• Businesses regulators need to address the  challenges that remain after collection, including safely storing, transporting, and dismantling batteries.  

There is a need for battery producers, recyclers, and other industry stakeholders to engage with policy makers by providing them with information about the importance of enacting policies for battery recycling now to avoid major costs in the future. 

 Developing a Dynamic Advanced Energy Workforce 

 Worker availability and skills to design, manufacture, and maintain batteries and electric vehicles will need to grow and evolve alongside South Carolina’s new energy industries. The state is actively working to increase awareness among job seekers about which occupations exist, create programs to reskill and upskill workers to ensure they have relevant expertise for these opportunities, and identify barriers to participation in the labor force so they can be remedied through policy and private sector action. 

 Participants highlighted several opportunities to support workforce development and broader participation: 

• Increasing access, enthusiasm, and ultimately enrollment in the state’s two-year college system will help build the skilled workforce needed to meet future needs in these industries. Participants celebrated the strength of educational opportunities offered by the state’s community and technical colleges. However, there are currently more job openings for workers with 2-year degrees than graduates with those qualifications.  

• Addressing barriers to participation in the workforce, such as lack of housing, childcare, and transportation options, will help expand the talent pool of workers who may have historically been excluded from participating in the labor market.  

These points represent a small snapshot of a full day of in-depth discussion in South Carolina. To learn more, keep an eye out for our forthcoming takeaways and policy brief with more in-depth insights and recommendations from the roundtable.