Due to the shortage of raw materials such as lithium, the price of power batteries may rise in 2022.

The Nikkei Asia Review reported that the price of electric car batteries looks set to rise in 2022 after a decade of sharp falls as the supply of lithium and other raw materials cannot meet ballooning demand.

Although mining companies are scrambling to increase production at existing facilities and develop new sources of supply, the benchmark price of lithium carbonate hit an all-time high by the end of 2021. The price of batteries in China, the world's largest battery producer, is 261500 yuan ($41060) per ton, more than five times higher than in January last year.

The most expensive component of each battery is the cathode, and the prices of other commodities used for cathode batteries are also rising: the price of cobalt has doubled since January last year to $70208 a tonne, while the price of nickel has risen 15 per cent to $20045 a tonne.

In recent years, carmakers and battery makers have been trying to develop long-life, high-performance batteries while also trying to reduce costs, while rising battery prices are undermining the progress made in these technologies and efficiency. They could also hamper the industry's ambitious electrification plans, just as previously reluctant companies such as Toyota have begun to implement electric vehicle production targets.