America’s Battery Blind Spot That’s Undermining U.S. Defense Security
By Jonathan Tan & Bill Hightower
July 02, 2025
Tima Miroshnichenko
The U.S. is pouring tens of billions into a once-in-a-generation industrial push to bring battery manufacturing home - powering everything from EVs and drones to submarines and soldier systems. But beneath the surface of this transformation lies a critical, often-overlooked vulnerability: the battery anode.
Nearly every battery depends on graphite and over 90% of the world’s anode-grade supply is produced in China. As geopolitical tensions rise and China tightens control over exports, America’s energy future and defense readiness hinge on a chokepoint it doesn’t control. This is not just a supply chain risk, it’s a strategic threat hiding in plain sight.
To build a resilient and independent battery supply chain, the United States must secure a domestic alternative to graphite. Fortunately, such an alternative already exists in the form of metallurgical silicon, a critical material currently produced in significant quantities by U.S. industry.
A Critical Domestic Resource at Risk
https://www.realcleardefense.com/articles/2025/07/02/americas_battery_blind_spot_thats_undermining_us_defense_security_1120096.html
