Cobalt (The next Uranium)

[blacksheep]

Auto, battery firms team up to procure stable supply of cobalt

8:36 pm, July 24, 2018

The Yomiuri Shimbun

A consortium of leading Japanese automakers and battery manufacturers will establish a joint organization for procuring cobalt (see below), aiming to ensure a stable supply of the rare metal that is indispensable for electric vehicle (EV) batteries, The Yomiuri Shimbun has learned.

 

With the help of the government, the consortium also plans to begin developing cobalt mines, according to sources, hoping to counter Chinese moves to gain control of cobalt interests in various parts of the world.

 

More than five companies will likely participate in the new joint venture, which is expected to be established as early as within fiscal 2018. Although trading firms and resource development companies commonly team up to procure natural resources, it is rare for different manufacturers to join hands to procure rare metals.

 

Because a large percentage of cobalt is concentrated in a few countries such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo, demand for it is expected to outstrip supply by around 2020. The Japanese consortium hopes to enhance its bargaining power with producer nations through government-backed joint procurement, and to prepare for future competition over natural resources.

http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0004606798

[blacksheep]

LG Chem vows to refrain from using ÃÆâ€â„¢ÃƒÆ’ƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¡Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬ÃƒÆ’â€Â¹Ãƒƒâ€Â¦ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚¬Ãƒâ€¦Ã¢â‚¬Å“conflict mineralsÃÆâ€â„¢ÃƒÆ’ƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¡Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¾Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢

Tech July 30, 2018 14:00 By The Korea Herald/ANN

S

outh KoreaÃÆâ€â„¢ÃƒÆ’ƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¡Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¾Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢s leading chemicals company LG Chem said Monday it would refrain from using four ÃÆâ€â„¢ÃƒÆ’ƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¡Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬ÃƒÆ’â€Â¦ÃƒƒÂ¢Ãƒ¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…âہ“conflict materialsÃÆâ€â„¢ÃƒÆ’ƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¡Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬ÃƒÆ’â€Å¡Ãƒƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚ as part of the companyÃÆâ€â„¢ÃƒÆ’ƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¡Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¾Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢s strengthened corporate social responsibilities concerning its supply chain.

 

The four conflict materials include gold, coltan, tin and tungsten. These minerals are known as conflict minerals because much of the supply is sourced from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and neighboring countries where a decadeslong civil war is being waged.LG Chem said in a 2017 sustainability report published Monday that it banned the purchase of the four conflict minerals from last year.With increased public attention on social responsibility, the company said it will continue to focus on ethical purchases of minerals to establish a validated, conflict-free supply chain.

 

ÃÆâ€â„¢ÃƒÆ’ƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¡Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬ÃƒÆ’â€Â¦ÃƒƒÂ¢Ãƒ¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…âہ“As part of our society, we will continue to conduct activities that can go beyond ÃÆâ€â„¢ÃƒÆ’ƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¡Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬ÃƒÆ’â€Â¹Ãƒƒâ€Â¦ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚¬Ãƒâ€¦Ã¢â‚¬Å“contribution,ÃÆâ€â„¢ÃƒÆ’ƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¡Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¾Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ but to ÃÆâ€â„¢ÃƒÆ’ƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¡Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬ÃƒÆ’â€Â¹Ãƒƒâ€Â¦ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚¬Ãƒâ€¦Ã¢â‚¬Å“coexistÃÆâ€â„¢ÃƒÆ’ƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¡Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¾Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ in society,ÃÆâ€â„¢ÃƒÆ’ƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¡Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬ÃƒÆ’â€Å¡Ãƒƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚ said LG Chem Vice President Park Jin-soo. In the US, legislation that compels US companies to audit their supply chains to ensure they are not using conflict minerals was signed by President Barack Obama in 2010. The law aimed to weaken Congo militias by cutting off their mining profits.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/Sta...and_IT/30351050

[blacksheep]

Some not so good news for our cobalt wannabee miners

Battery chemical surplus sparks plunge in cobalt price

Reuters | about 10 hours ago |

LONDON, July 31 (Reuters) ÃÆâ€â„¢ÃƒÆ’ƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¡Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚¬Ãƒâ€¦Ã‚¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬Ãƒâ€Â¦ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚¬Ãƒâ€¦Ã¢â‚¬Å“ A surplus of cobalt chemicals used to make the rechargeable batteries that power electric vehicles has seen Chinese refiners switch to producing metal, sending prices down 30 percent in recent months.

read more - http://www.mining.com/web/battery-chemical...e-cobalt-price/

 

Glencore Sees Big Jump in Cobalt Supply From Congo Mines

By Thomas Biesheuvel

July 31, 2018, 4:48 PM GMT+10

Commodity giant plans to double cobalt output in two years

It reported that cobalt production rose 31% during first half

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/201...rom-congo-mines

[blacksheep]

FOCUS: Following the developing international lithium, cobalt markets

Two minor metals have grabbed attention for their value in making batteries for electric vehicles ÃÆâ€â„¢ÃƒÆ’ƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¡Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚¬Ãƒâ€¦Ã‚¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬Ãƒâ€Â¦ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚¬Ãƒâ€¦Ã¢â‚¬Å“ lithium and cobalt. Metal Bulletin price development manager Jon Mulcahy and battery raw materials team leader Charlotte Radford explore a rapidly evolving market and how market intelligence for the metals is becoming increasingly transparent.

https://www.metalbulletin.com/Article/38240...lt-markets.html?

[blacksheep]

Cobalt Blue CEO on Business Strategy, Cobalt Prices, Supply Crunch

Aug.07 -- Joe Kaderavek, chief executive officer at Cobalt Blue Holdings, discusses the current state of his business, how important the Democratic Republic of Congo is to his company, the price of cobalt, where he sees prices heading and a possible supply crunch. He speaks on Bloomberg Markets: Asia."

https://www.msn.com/da-dk/video/underholdni...unch/vi-BBLAFYL

[nipper]

Run a watchlist of Cobalt stocks; most peaked about April and it's been downhill ever since.

 

Glad it's only a watchlist.

[blacksheep]

Battery upsurge spurs quest to resurrect World War II cobalt mines

Bloomberg News | about 13 hours ago |

The giant rocky outcrop known by locals as La Cobaltera offers a glimpse into northern ChileÃÆâ€â„¢ÃƒÆ’ƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¡Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¾Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢s mining past, and a hint of its future.

 

Slag from an ancient furnace is piled at the entrance of a mine shaft that hasnÃÆâ€â„¢ÃƒÆ’ƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¡Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¾Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢t seen commercial activity since World War II. Inside, eucalyptus posts still support narrow tunnels, placed there by German engineers as a kind of alarm system: when they creaked it was a sign the tunnel might collapse.

 

Now the global hunt for cobalt, a key commodity in the electric-vehicle revolution, is rousing the sleepy community on the edge of ChileÃÆâ€â„¢ÃƒÆ’ƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¡Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¾Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢s northern desert. Trucks are bouncing down the meandering dirt road from Freirina, carrying modern mining equipment to La Cobaltera. On a recent morning, workers operated a drilling machine that rattled the ground as they dug as deep as 90 meters (295 feet) for mineral samples. When a drill core was pulled out, the workers cheered the appearance of a column of compact rock peppered with bright green for copper, and black for cobalt.

read more - http://www.mining.com/web/battery-boom-spu...i-cobalt-mines/

[blacksheep]

Congo Expects Declaration on Strategic Metals by End of October

By William Clowes

September 18, 2018, 8:49 PM GMT+10

Mines minister said Sept. 15 cobalt will be declared strategic

New categorization will impose 10% tax on Glencore, others

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/201...-end-of-october

[blacksheep]

China battery firms set up $700m nickel joint venture in Indonesia

Reuters | a day ago

BEIJING, Sept 28 (Reuters) ÃÆâ€â„¢ÃƒÆ’ƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¡Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚¬Ãƒâ€¦Ã‚¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬Ãƒâ€Â¦ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚¬Ãƒâ€¦Ã¢â‚¬Å“ Chinese battery firm GEM Co Ltd on Friday said it was teaming up with four companies to invest a total of $700 million in a project to produce battery-grade nickel chemicals in Indonesia.

 

The investment comes as several global metals producers have also set their sights on Indonesia's nickel reserves, looking to tap an expected surge in demand for the battery metal from the electric vehicle sector.

 

The companies joining GEM include units of top Chinese lithium battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd (CATL) and stainless steel-maker Tsingshan Holding Group.

 

They aim to establish nickel smelting capacity of at least 50,000 tonnes per year at Tsingshan's industrial park in Morowali on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi.

 

[b]The project will also have 4,000 tonnes of cobalt smelting capacity, as well as churning out a range of battery chemicals, including 50,000 tonnes per year of nickel hydroxide intermediates[/b].

 

"In the future, the product structure will be adjusted according to the global market demand and the production scale will be expanded," GEM said in an emailed statement, without providing a launch date.

 

read more - http://www.mining.com/web/china-battery-fi...ture-indonesia/

[blacksheep]

ERG bets on cobalt from Congo in quest for growth

 

MOSCOW, Oct 9 (Reuters) ÃÆâ€â„¢ÃƒÆ’ƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¡Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚¬Ãƒâ€¦Ã‚¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬Ãƒâ€Â¦ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚¬Ãƒâ€¦Ã¢â‚¬Å“ Eurasian Resources Group (ERG) plans to ramp up cobalt output at its Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) facility as it expects the electric car industry to boost demand for the metal, ERG Chief Executive Benedikt Sobotka told Reuters.

 

ERG, a global mining and metals group with Kazakh roots, aims to raise cobalt output fivefold to 20,000 tonnes next year, claiming a large chunk of the booming market whose volume was around 100,000 tonnes in 2017, Sobotka said in an interview in Moscow.

 

The growth is expected to come from the launch of the Metalkol facility in DRC where ERG will reprocess cobalt and copper tailings ÃÆâ€â„¢ÃƒÆ’ƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¢ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â€š¬Ã…¡Ãƒâ€šÃ‚¬ÃƒÆ’…¡Ãƒâہ¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚¬Ãƒâ€¦Ã‚¡ÃƒÆ’‚¬Ãƒâ€Â¦ÃƒÆ’¢Ã¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚¬Ãƒâ€¦Ã¢â‚¬Å“ waste dumped by other miners.

 

ERG believes Metalkol will become one of the world's biggest cobalt producers with output capacity of 24,000 tonnes of cobalt and 120,000 tonnes of copper cathode.

 

The DRC government this year enacted a new mining code, which imposes a windfall profits tax, raises royalties and cancels so-called stability clauses that had protected miners against changes to the fiscal regime for 10 years.

 

Major mining companies such as Glencore and Randgold have opposed the code, saying the tax hikes and the removal of exemptions for pre-existing operations were a breach of their agreements with the government.

 

But Sobotka indicated ERG, which posted a core profit of more than $2 billion in 2017 and expects to boost that number this year on record output at all units, was committed to its DRC operations.

 

"If you want to be a cobalt market player, DRC is the place to be. It has 70 percent of global (cobalt) reserves," Sobotka said.

 

read more - http://www.mining.com/web/erg-bets-cobalt-...o-quest-growth/