美国国家公共电台 NPR--What the U.S. needs to do to be the leaders in EVs and the batteries that power them

What the U.S. needs to do to be the leaders in EVs and the batteries that power them

Transcript¹

There's a race for dominance in electric vehicles and the batteries that power them. China leads right now, but other countries — including the U.S. — are trying hard to catch up.

A MART?NEZ, HOST:

The Biden administration has an ambitious plan to make the U.S. a leader in electric vehicles and the batteries that power them. The goal is to ensure EVs make up more than 60% of new car sales by 2032. Key to the success is securing the needed minerals and other materials. And as NPR's Jackie Northam reports, the U.S. is coming late to the EV race.

JACKIE NORTHAM, BYLINE²: The geopolitical race to dominate the lithium ion battery is on. So far, China is far ahead of the pack. Andy Miller³ is with Benchmark Mineral Intelligence. He says those batteries can represent energy security for nations, much like oil.

ANDY MILLER: If you want to move to solar, to wind, to any type of renewables, you need a way to store it. And the battery is the essential component⁴ of that.

NORTHAM: China is the OPEC of batteries, says Steve LeVine, the author of "The Powerhouse." He says Beijing has long been strategic about acquiring the critical minerals needed to make them.

STEVE LEVINE: So that's meant making deals and buying lithium mines in South America, buying and contracting for cobalt in Democratic Republic of Congo, for lithium in Australia, nickel in Indonesia. They've put together a map that brings all of the stuff to them.

NORTHAM: LeVine says China also dominates the refining of the raw minerals. The U.S., which considers China a strategic competitor, is lagging behind, but there are moves to change that. The Inflation Reduction Act is filled with tax incentives⁵ to boost the electric vehicle industry. But automakers need to show that 40% of the battery minerals come from the U.S. or its free trade partners.

CULLEN HENDRIX: It's going to have to go out and, frankly⁶, find new friends.

NORTHAM: Cullen Hendrix, a commodity specialist at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, says the U.S. may need to look elsewhere for lithium and the like.

HENDRIX: Countries with which it can kind of craft deals to make sure that it has access to the raw materials and, in some cases, the process materials that are going to be necessary for feeding into this huge increase in domestic battery production capacity.

NORTHAM: Cullen says the U.S. has several large lithium deposits, including in Wyoming and Utah. But the permitting process to open new mines is lengthy⁷ compared to China. He says even in Western countries like Canada and Australia, the permitting process would take two or three years.

HENDRIX: In the United States, that process could take up to a decade. And that's sort of the most optimistic kind of way of looking at it.

NORTHAM: And in the meantime, other countries are getting in the game - South Korea, Japan, even Sweden. A mega battery factory called Northvolt opened in northern Sweden in 2017. It was seen as a homegrown enterprise to help give the country energy independence. Anders Thor is Northvolt's communications director.

ANDERS THOR: We are the first homegrown producer of batteries in Europe and the first mass producer of batteries. When I joined 3 1/2 ago, we had almost nothing. And now it's a factory producing batteries with 1,700 people.

NORTHAM: Thor says Northvolt is expanding rapidly through Scandinavia. There are plans for Europe and the U.S. He says the Inflation Reduction Act has created enormous interest among Northvolt's customers. And it may open its own battery production plant in the U.S. in the near future, which means the U.S. is still in the race when it comes to electric vehicles and lithium ion batteries.

Jackie Northam, NPR News.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 miller   

n.磨坊主

参考例句：

• Every miller draws water to his own mill.磨坊主都往自己磨里注水。
• The skilful miller killed millions of lions with his ski.技术娴熟的磨坊主用雪橇杀死了上百万头狮子。

4 component   

n.组成部分，成分，元件；adj.组成的，合成的

参考例句：

• Each component is carefully checked before assembly.每个零件在装配前都经过仔细检查。
• Blade and handle are the component parts of a knife.刀身和刀柄是一把刀的组成部分。

5 incentives   

激励某人做某事的事物( incentive的名词复数 )； 刺激； 诱因； 动机

参考例句：

• tax incentives to encourage savings 鼓励储蓄的税收措施
• Furthermore, subsidies provide incentives only for investments in equipment. 更有甚者，提供津贴仅是为鼓励增添设备的投资。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

6 frankly   

adv.坦白地，直率地；坦率地说

参考例句：

• To speak frankly, I don't like the idea at all.老实说，我一点也不赞成这个主意。
• Frankly speaking, I'm not opposed to reform.坦率地说，我不反对改革。

7 lengthy   

adj.漫长的，冗长的

参考例句：

• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。
• The professor wrote a lengthy book on Napoleon.教授写了一部有关拿破仑的巨著。