Australia has long been the lucky country, one of the key reasons being that it has an abundance of almost every resource a resource company could want.
The latest material that is generating global excitement is lithium. It is the key part of the lithium batteries that are being put in large amounts of electric vehicles by manufacturers such as Tesla.
Lithium is also being used to power phones, laptops and bikes. The next wave of usage will be for the home batteries that are connected to solar panels. The price of lithium per kilo has grown by a substantial amount over the last few years and could keep going.
Australian miners like Galaxy Resources Limited (ASX: GXY), Kidman Resources Ltd (ASX: KDR) and Orocobre Limited (ASX: ORE) have already seen their share prices rocket over the past two years with the share prices up 856%, 1250% and 262% respectively.
Tesla and other electric car manufacturers are going to ramp up their production in the near future and this should drive demand much higher for lithium.
However, lithium is at risk of supply and demand cycles as much as any other commodity. If more lithium mines around the world are created, then the price could come under pressure with increased supply.
Our bigger miners are starting to take notice of the opportunity. Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) recently announced that it will be looking to find lithium in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.
Foolish takeaway
I think the lithium mining industry is an exciting one and some people will make a lot of money from it. Whether those people will be investors buying today remains to be seen. I won't be a buyer, but I'll be a keen spectator on the sidelines.