Overview

• Kamath’s X post warned that nickel strip mining in Indonesia is decimating biodiversity hotspots and polluting marine environments.
• He highlighted that the Democratic Republic of Congo supplies more than 70% of global cobalt through artisanal mines linked to child labor and community displacement.
• Kamath underscored China’s stranglehold on the EV supply chain, controlling around 90% of rare earth processing, 75% of lithium and 80% of tungsten.
• He noted that coal-fired power often fuels the processing of critical minerals, undercutting the carbon-reduction claims of electric vehicles.
• Social media responses to his critique ranged from defenses of EVs as the greenest option to calls for prioritizing public transport infrastructure.