Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1392944
JULY 2021 I PCB007 MAGAZINE 31 mand in other markets outside of electronics manufacturing. You have a limited amount of copper and this huge demand in markets for a finished prod- uct that is probably easier to fabricate than the foil. How do you balance that? Stevens: We are not struggling with balancing the demand to non-PCB markets yet. is is something that is constant- ly on our minds as we see the market changing. As the only ED foil manufacturer in North America, we re- ally feel that we have an obligation to the PCB market which we have been supplying for over 40 years. Our foil is used in a significant amount of North American PCBs. We are spec'd into a lot of military defense and aerospace applica- tions, and we know that it is critical to contin- ue supporting this business. Aside from PCBs, our foils are used in EMI and RF shielding ap- plications, and lightning strike protection for composite aircra. We have had to evolve our business in North America since the PCB mar- ket crash in the early 2000s. We have formed partnerships with our customers in all these markets, and it is our priority to continue these partnerships. Johnson: Mike, can you quantify the demand for copper? Coll: Current market estimates for the produc- tion of ED copper foil is around 600,000 met- ric tons per year. We have seen market reports that suggest the need for additional copper foil, specifically for EV batteries, will require a 50% increase, or another 300,000 metric tons per year by the end of 2025. ED copper foil fac- tories are very capital-intensive, and there are a limited number of suppliers who produce ED copper foil manufacturing equipment. One of the most critical parts in an ED copper foil fac- tory is the drum. e drum is the cathode, to which the copper plates, as it rotates in the copper-acid electrolyte. ese drums are typically more than 2.5 meters in diam- eter, and the face to which we plate is a precision-ground ti- tanium skin that is greater than 1.3 meters across. e foil typically used for EVs is only 8 microns thick and the rolls are 1,000 meters long, so you can imagine the lim- ited supply base that has the knowhow to manufacture the drums, the plat- ing cells, winding equipment, and so on. e constraints to increase capacity to meet fore- cast demand will challenge all foil suppliers. It's hard to imagine increasing the installed capacity of this industry by 50% in four years to meet the projected demand. While it is excit- ing to hear the aggressive plans that companies like GM has, turning their entire fleet to elec- tric vehicles by 2035, it should cause some con- cern to the other industries that also need cop- per foil. Where is all the copper foil going to come from? I struggle to understand how the ED foil industry is going to meet the project- ed demand. Johnson: From what I understand, a market watch report out of Wall Street made the com- ment that copper is the new oil. Coll: We have read the same. Like oil and oth- er natural resources, there's a finite supply of copper. Mines will become less productive, re- sulting in increased cost. And recycled sources will become scarce, resulting in increased cost. Copper prices will continue to increase. Johnson: It could easily become much more of a strategic resource than we've seen before. It's interesting that the copper appetite for elec- tric vehicles is exactly the same as the amount Chris Stevens