Battery anode materials: Feedstocks
Why refinery leftovers decide the price of your battery anode
What this tab covers What it is made from and what it feeds: the raw materials and energy per tonne with their share of cost (linked to the commodity table), who is low-cost and why, and the chemicals made from it.Synthetic anodes need needle coke or low-sulphur petroleum coke, pitch and large amounts of electricity; natural anodes need flake concentrate and acid. Competitiveness comes from cheap power for graphitisation and secure coke supply, which favours Chinese plants in hydro- or coal-power provinces.
Inputs per tonne
| Input | Quantity per tonne | Role | Share of cost | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oil Crude oil | about 1.3-1.6 t per t synthetic anode (indicative) | carbon precursor | large; GGII cites coke tightness as the reason for 2026 price rises | GGII (Feb 2026); quantity indicative |
| Kc Coking coal | pitch as binder and coating, a few percent to 10% (indicative) | binder, coating | small (indicative) | Indicative |
| Gr Graphite | about 2-3 t per t spherical graphite (indicative) | carbon source for natural anodes | flake $460-489/t FOB China (Sept 2024, Fastmarkets) | graphite tile |
| Si Silicon | a few percent of anode blends | capacity booster | high per kg | Indicative |
| Electricity for graphitisation | roughly 8-14 MWh per t synthetic anode (indicative) | heats furnaces to about 3,000 C | largest conversion cost (indicative) | Indicative |
| Hydrofluoric acid (purification of natural graphite) | not published | removes impurities to 99.95% C | small | graphite tile |
Who is low-cost, and why
Chinese synthetic plants in Inner Mongolia, Sichuan and Yunnan with cheap coal or hydro power and integrated graphitisation set the floor. Western plants pay several times more for power and face qualification delays.