GlobalData: Critical Minerals Shortages Threaten International Energy Transition Goals

Wedoany.com Report-Nov 22,The global transition to clean energy is gaining momentum, heavily relying on renewable technologies such as solar PV cells and wind turbines, alongside energy transition solutions like hydrogen, energy storage, and carbon capture. This shift has triggered an unprecedented surge in demand for critical minerals, posing significant challenges in achieving international energy transition goals, says GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

GlobalData’s latest Strategic Intelligence report, Critical Minerals (2024), identifies several main challenges to scaling clean energy technologies: mineral depletion, resource monopolization, geopolitical tensions, and water scarcity.

Many critical minerals are concentrated in specific regions, creating uneven resource distribution and volatile market dynamics. For example, much of the world’s lithium reserves are concentrated in South America and Australia, while the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) provides much of the world’s cobalt, and Indonesia dominates nickel production.