I am bullish on Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX:PLS) as Pilbara Minerals shares have been a star performer in 2022, it is ranked number one on the 2022 list of Top 10 hot ASX stocks in the Tiger Community and it is also one of Australia’s biggest listed pure-play lithium mining players.

As of February 2023, Pilbara Minerals Ltd has a market cap of AUD14.66B in Market Capitalization.

Pilbara is among the world’s top 10 global lithium producers. It is one of the very few ASX lithium shares that is actually producing lithium. Many others are explorers in the early stages of building mines.

So, looking long term, Pilbara is well placed in that sense because it’s establishing customer relationships now, well in advance of other ASX lithium companies that don’t yet have anything to sell.

Another long-term positive for Pilbara Minerals shares is the direct link to two major emerging investment trends — decarbonisation and electric vehicles (EVs).

As reported in The Australian, Wealthi economist Peter Esho estimates there are six or seven million EVs globally today. That’s expected to rise to at least 150 million by 2030. In short, that means a tonne (or rather billions of tonnes) of demand for lithium.

Pilbara Minerals competitive advantage lies in its Western Australian mine. The Pilgangoora Project, has an estimated mine life of 26 years and a maximum production capacity of 580,000 tonnes per annum.