Advertisement Home // NPR News How a handful of metals could determine the future of the electric car industry 04:02 Download Play March 13, 2022 Camila Domonoske Twitter facebook Email A worker assembles Volkswagen electric cars at the company's plant in Zwickau, Germany on Jan. 27. Automakers like Volkswagen are racing to secure enough metals to power the batteries needed to make electric vehicles. (Jens Schlueter/Getty Images)