Advanced carbon material
The original carbon workhorse, now central to the battery age. Graphite has anchored steelmaking and lubrication for over a century, and it is now the dominant anode material in lithium-ion batteries.
Mined
Synthetic
What is graphite
Graphite is crystalline carbon built from stacked graphene layers held together by weak forces, which is what gives it both conductivity and lubricity. It comes in natural form, mined as flake, vein or amorphous grades, and in synthetic form, made from petroleum coke and pitch then graphitised at high temperature. Graphite conducts electricity and heat, withstands high temperatures, resists chemicals and machines easily. Its largest growth market by far is the anode in lithium-ion batteries, which has turned a mature commodity into a strategic material.
Material properties
Market outlook
The global graphite market is valued at roughly $23 billion in 2024. Natural graphite mine output runs on the order of a million tonnes a year, and graphite makes up more than 90 percent of the anode material in lithium ion batteries, now the dominant driver of demand. Synthetic graphite accounts for around two thirds of supply.
ACC Intelligence
Independent market sizing, the natural and synthetic supply landscape, and application-level demand forecasts, refreshed every year.
Where graphite appears in our coverage
How graphite fits the carbon ecosystem
The above is for illustration purposes only and does not represent every possible data point.
Standards and certification
Recent coverage
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At a glance