Analyzing the global warming potential of the production and utilization of lithium-ion batteries with nickel-manganese-cobalt cathode chemistries in European Gigafactories

Abstract

This study evaluates the global warming potential (GWP) impact of producing lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) in emerging European Gigafactories. The paper presents a cradle-to-gate (CTG) life cycle assessment (LCA) of nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) chemistries for battery electric vehicle (BEV) applications. We consider three scenarios to cover the most probable production routes in Germany, France, and Italy, foreseen as the largest European LIB producers by 2030. The energy demand for manufacturing considers two cases: electricity only and a mix of heat and electricity. The results show that European Gigafactories can reduce the overall GWP relative to 1 kWh of NMC battery, with respect to Chinese NMC LIBs, in a range of 32–60%. This corresponds to a decrease in equivalent CO2 emission of 32–81 kg CO2 eq., depending on the location, the energy demand and the NMC chemistry, if the whole production takes place in the facility. French Gigafactories obtain the upper bound of this reduction. A sensitivity analysis of the source of the lithium compound, used to produce the active cathode material, shows that increasing the nickel content decreases the GWP impact per kWh of battery capacity. However, NMC622 generates less equivalent CO2 than NMC811, for lithium compound produced from Chilean brine. In addition, a simplified analysis of the utilization phase of two different classes of BEVs shows the positive effects of the regional LIB production and of the low carbon intensity of the electricity mix.