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Battery costs have declined by 99% in the last three decades, making electrified transport a reality
(ourworldindata.org)
this post was submitted on 01 Apr 2026
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While they are getting cheaper, lithium is not in infinite quantities, nor are rare earths and other elements within li-ion batteries. Also cobalt is problematic for many reasons. LFP are much better but still depend on lithium at least. So, price helps, but it's not everything.
First you make batteries economically viable alternatives to fossil based energy sources.
Then the competition for even more economically viable battery technologies brings the tech to the next level.
Besides, lithium and the used rare earth elements can be recycled. It's not like they'd evaporate when being used.
Friendly reminder batteries are not an energy source they just store energy and stabilize the grid
One could argue that fossil fuels are a kind of chemical battery that store solar energy from aeons ago.
But in a strict sense you're right and that's why I'm keen on having more batteries in the wild, because there are (more and more) times, in which wind turbines and solar farms need to be throttled or shut down, because their continued operation endangers the grid by providing too much electric energy.
So more batteries -> more renewable energy can be captured and stored/buffered!