EV batteries contain nickel, which is highly polluting to produce.
Fact:
This myth was given voice in an episode of Spotlight on Australian television in April 2025. The program alleged that nickel produced in Indonesia is highly damaging to the local environment, and that this nickel is used in Chinese-made EVs. The implication was that EV are no less damaging to the environment than internal combustion engine vehicles.
Nothing could actually be further from the truth. While it’s true that Indonesian nickel mining is environmentally unfriendly, it is not used in EV batteries; it’s the wrong grade. The countries that produce the correct grade are Canada, Russia and Australia, where the mining process is far less harmful to local ecosystems.
But this is largely irrelevant, as 60 percent of all EVs use Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) batteries, which contain no nickel at all. [Nor do they contain any cobalt. See the following myth.] The figure for Chinese EVs is 70 percent, a fact that was ignored in the Spotlight episode.
In fact, 70 percent of all nickel mined globally is used to produce stainless steel. This is where Indonesia’s nickel goes. So yes, campaign against Indonesian mining practices, but not against EVs. They are not the culprit in this story.