According to the European Federation for Transport and Environment, weak CO2 standards give carmakers little incentive to increase the sales of electric cars until 2030.

It allows the company to boost throughput by 20% to 3,600 tonnes/day at its flagship Yauricocha copper mine.

Notice came as Beijing struggles to cool a surge in metal prices this year fuelled by a post-pandemic economic recovery, ample global liquidity and speculative buying that has dented manufacturers’ margins.

Ford, Nissan, LG and Samsung, Britishvolt and InoBat Auto are in talks with the British government or local authorities about locations for potential factories and financial support.

The head of the chamber of mines in the DRC suggests investors focus instead on Congo’s copper.

Volkswagen aims to overtake Tesla as the global EV leader by the middle of the decade.