The coal industry will likely never return to its former glory, despite promises President Trump has made to the contrary. Fossil fuels will likely take a similar course, but not for several decades. Still, countries are starting to put the writing on the proverbial wall.
China currently considers a ban on the production of gasoline and diesel-fueled cars and France has taken steps to end the sale of diesel and gas cars by 2040. Supposing those events do take place, it’s likely the market for fossil fuel vehicles will decline sharply during the middle 2000s and likely push electric-vehicle development further in the near future.
While anyone reading that last paragraph will consider this a doom and gloom column about the dark future fossil fuels have, this is about the great opportunity Sweetwater County and Wyoming has resting beneath our feet. One of the keys to building electric vehicles involves lithium, an important component in the batteries used in electric vehicles and as many longtime readers are likely aware, Sweetwater County is believed to have a large reserve of the mineral.
While the state continues to grapple with revenue shortfalls from declines in its mineral-based industries, one thing legislators should keep a close eye on in the importance lithium will have in the coming years. Should the oil and gas industry make a comeback like some have predicted, legislators would be wise to push some of those revenues into helping fund research into the geology surrounding the lithium find, as well as cost-effective methods to exploit the resource.
Early on, excitement was high because of an announcement made by University of Wyoming researchers studying the area for use in carbon sequestration, but that excitement died down shortly after. The depth of the lithium discovered is at 10,000-12,000 feet, which researchers thought could be utilized as part of a carbon sequestration operation.
It doesn’t do anyone any good to deny the future. Yes, we agree a lot will have to happen to completely change the world’s reliance on fossil fuels, but one can’t argue that China, which represents the largest car market on the planet, won’t cause shockwaves in the auto industry if it moves forward on its proposed ban. Wyoming should start investigating a future where gasoline powered vehicles will be in the minority and electric vehicles have batteries created from lithium pulled out of Sweetwater County.
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