Where Does the Lithium in Your EV Battery Come From? Car Makers May Not Know.

Text size About the authors: Tom LaTourrette is a senior physical scientist at the RAND Corp. Fabian E. Villalobos is an engineer at RAND and a professor of policy analysis at the Pardee RAND Graduate School. The initial slate of electric vehicles qualifying for the new $7,500 federal tax credit in the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act was announced Monday. Key to eligibility is the source of critical minerals used in their batteries. While the list of acceptable nations of origin are still being worked out, there's an important practical question the IRS should ask: Do car makers really know where…