The electric vehicle (EV) surge is changing the automotive industry as we know it. You see more and more of these sleek, sustainable, high-tech marvels but did you know that the finished car that you will drive home, as well as the parts and raw materials that make it possible, get to market on CN trains?

CN has long been a mover of steel, aluminum, and other natural resources used to make vehicles. As global automotive producers race to meet the growing consumer demand for electric vehicles, the call for lithium, the silvery-white metal that powers most EV battery packs, has also accelerated. Many forecasts predict that lithium demand will soon outpace supply.

Canada’s northern Quebec region is believed to contain some of the world’s largest deposits of spodumene – a mineral rich in lithium and a proven source material for lithium batteries. With mines opening and production of lithium increasing, along with other critical minerals ramping up across this region, Canada will play a vital role in supplying EV supply chain.

CN is already moving essential lithium from the mines to battery manufacturers and has the resources and capacity to support more customers as additional production comes on-line.

With more battery plants opening or planning to open across Canada and the United States, CN – as an enabler of the North American economy and one of Canada’s largest transporters of automotive parts and vehicles – is working with our automotive customers to create new supply chains and enhance existing ones for the growing EV market.

CN is proud to be moving some of the biggest names in EV production and with our 18 strategically-located CN-served automotive compounds, we are poised to move more. From the raw materials to the intermediary goods, and the finished vehicles themselves, CN is ready to help automotive producers optimize their EV supply chains.