[ManuelKiessling]

Global copper reserves are about 980 million tonnes, with 1.5 billion tonnes of identified resources and 2024 mine production of about 23 million tonnes.

A conventional car uses about 23 kg of copper and a battery-electric car about 83 kg, a difference of roughly 60 kg per vehicle.

With more than 17 million EVs sold in 2024, that implies about 1.4 million tonnes of copper embodied in those vehicles, or about 1.0 million tonnes more copper than comparable conventional cars would have used; applying the same assumptions to the current global passenger-car fleet implies roughly 120 million tonnes total or 87 million tonnes incremental copper for an all-BEV fleet.

Separately, the IEA says that under today’s policy settings and announced projects, copper faces an implied 30% mined-supply shortfall in 2035, while expanded recycling could reduce new mine needs for copper by about 35% by 2050.

USGS copper reserves / resources / mine production https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2025/mcs2025-copper.pdf

USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2025 landing page https://pubs.usgs.gov/publication/mcs2025

IEA Global EV Outlook 2025 – trends in electric car markets https://www.iea.org/reports/global-ev-outlook-2025/trends-in...

IEA Global EV Outlook 2025 – full report page https://www.iea.org/reports/global-ev-outlook-2025

IEA Global EV Outlook 2025 – PDF https://iea.blob.core.windows.net/assets/7ea38b60-3033-42a6-...

IEA Global Critical Minerals Outlook 2025 – overview for copper shortfall / recycling https://www.iea.org/reports/global-critical-minerals-outlook...

IEA Global Critical Minerals Outlook 2025 – executive summary https://www.iea.org/reports/global-critical-minerals-outlook...

IEA Global Critical Minerals Outlook 2025 – PDF https://iea.blob.core.windows.net/assets/ef5e9b70-3374-4caa-...

International Copper Association – copper intensity in electrification of transport https://internationalcopper.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/2...

[measurablefunc]

Great, do these reports include all the other materials that go into BEV b/c copper is only one single component w/ a shortfall.

[vel0city]

And the goalposts go flying!

You know what's a shortfall today around the world? Gasoline.

[measurablefunc]

Peak oil production was in 1970 so I don't know what to tell you other than it's basic physics. You should look into something called EROEI (energy return on energy invested). You might find it useful for your next argument about the viability of EVs.

[vel0city]

I don't know what to tell you. ICE cars are doomed, it's basic physics. They depend on something that is a finite resource that you agree peaked a long while ago. They're well along their way to complete failure. And yet while we'll still have the copper to recycle into new motors we won't have more oil. But here you are telling me we're going to run out of copper despite lots of sources telling you that's absolutely nonsense, but you'll believe it because some guy in a YouTube video told you "that's just basic physics, there's only so much copper, gotcha!"

> You should look into something called EROEI (energy return on energy invested).

I'm very familiar with it. As easy supplies of oil are getting used up the EROEI of oil is falling. It takes a lot of energy to transport and refine all those tar sands after all. It takes a lot of energy to cryogenically transport LNG around the world. And once you burn it, you need yet another shipment of it around the world. Meanwhile the EROEI of modern renewables is often even exceeding natural gas plants. I don't know what to tell you other than it's basic physics.

You might find actually reading sources other than the oil and gas industry lobbyists enlightening on the topic. Quit asking the Altria group if you should quit that smoking habit and go talk to an actual doctor. And before you brush that off, it's exactly what you're doing. You're asking an oil industry insider if you should bother looking into buying less oil. Of course he's going to tell you nothing else makes sense, keep buying oil.

You should look at actual facts with real figures for your next argument about EVs instead of claiming there's not enough copper. I'm sorry you've swallowed so many obvious lies by these guys.

[measurablefunc]

In any event, this discussion has run its course so good luck in your EV evangelism efforts.

[vel0city]

That's right, once you've realized an EV charged from solar power will have a higher EROEI than a gas car fueled from oil sands and corn juice "the discussion has run its course", and that gasoline has a finite time of economic usefulness rapidly approaching "this discussion has run its course".

I dunno what to tell you, it's just basic physics. Unless you're paid millions from the oil industry, in which case it's suddenly very complicated.