Glencore CEO flags China-Congo-cobalt nexus, responsible for 80% of global cobalt chemical production, a crucial ingredient of electric vehicle batteries.
Nervous Asian battery makers are turning to early-stage cobalt projects in Australia and Canada to lock in supplies of the critical battery ingredient ahead of expected shortages as demand for electric vehicles revs up.
German researchers say cobalt-free battery technologies — including post-lithium technologies based on non-critical elements — are the best way to avoid supply issues in the long term.
The changes to the mining code in Congo, which supplies some 60 percent of the world's cobalt, could have repercussions for consumers around the world.