Global cobalt metal prices have diverged on a reversal in demand across global markets, with strength now coming from aerospace and alloying applications, and weakness in chemical markets feeding certain types of battery…The divergence in prices in Europe in the past few weeks has given the clearest example of the trend happening across global markets. On one side, chemical-grade metal prices have fallen to $21.25-22.50/lb duty unpaid in Rotterdam, down from $25.80-26.30/lb at the beginning of the quarter on 3 October. Alloy-grade metal prices have declined but held much firmer, assessed at $23-24/lb on 6 November, down from $25.80-26.80/lb on 3 October. The divergence of the market is more visible looking at the spread between alloy-grade pricing in Europe and metal prices in China. Prices in China are down to 318-345 yuan/kg ($20.67-22.43/lb)…There has been disagreement among market participants about the market direction for a number of months, as aerospace-facing traders are more positive about demand, while those selling chemical grades of cobalt see weaker buying interest for their products…As commercial aerospace manufacturers increase their run rate to meet returning international travel, demand for aerospace-linked metals, including cobalt, is set to increase next year…The US market accepts only certain brands of cobalt metal, from western producers, which are set to be in short supply next year because of announced supply deals or, in the case of a Norwegian producer, strike action affecting production. Buyers are also becoming more selective about the cobalt they consume, meaning some Chinese and Cuban-linked suppliers are unable to sell into the US market. "ESG policies have gathered apace and that's preventing some of the cheap material from filling those gaps," said one metal trader…The demand downturn resulting from China's strict Covid-19 policies could dissipate in the coming months, reversing the bifurcation trend within the cobalt market. Since China went into sporadic local lockdowns in March, there has been a sharp drop in demand for electronics batteries and electric vehicle (EV) batteries. While the EV market recovered, the electronics sector recovery failed to materialise, resulting in a swift downturn in cobalt prices in China. A report by the Cobalt Institute put electronics batteries as the second-largest end-use market for cobalt metal in 2021, at 31pc of total consumption, second only to EV batteries, which were at 34pc of overall consumption. 

GOVERNMENTS around the world, including our own in the UK, want us to use electric vehicles. It’s an imperative if we’re to have any chance of meeting zero carbon targetsc, particularly in London…So, the news electric car battery prices have risen for the first time in more than a decade is especially timely and alarming. The surging cost of metals used in the manufacture of batteries, such as cobalt and lithium, has pushed the price of a battery pack up to $151 per kilowatt hour, a rise of 7% on a year ago, according to the BloombergNEF annual survey… “Amid these price increases for battery metals, large battery manufacturers and automakers have turned to more aggressive strategies to hedge against volatility, including direct investments in mining and refining projects,” she said…To which can only be added, good luck with that. If, for example, they want to extract cobalt from the Democratic Republic of Congo, which has 3.5 million tonnes of reserves and accounts for more than half the world’s supply, they will be lucky. Cobalt is a by-product of copper and nickel. Of the 19 mining projects under way in Congo that produce cobalt, no less than 15 are now under Chinese control…Chinese investors stepped in smartly after Western firms turned their back on the DRC following a series of scandals that saw the likes of Dan Gertler, the Israeli mining billionaire, accused of corruption and hit with US sanctions…China, it seems has got the DRC, and with it the supply of cobalt, nicely sewn up. Not for the first time where Beijing’s ambition and ability to plan long-term is concerned, the West is sleep walking into disaster. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and dependence on Russian energy supplies, plus reliance on Ukraine’s grain harvests, provides stark warning as to what can happen. Somewhat late in the day, the US is waking up — possibly too late — to the realisation that the bulk of the globe’s cobalt belongs to China…“What makes this a really significant challenge is China could use this the same way Russia can use oil, or in the same way that the world is impacted because of grain supply,” said Brad Martin, director of RAND Corporation’s institute for supply chain security. China’s ability to deny access to cobalt “creates a national security vulnerability,” he added…It’s not just that China understands the need for access to strategic materials, such as cobalt, it’s stockpiling as well. On the contrary, the US has been selling off large amounts of its critical materials stockpile, including cobalt…The Biden administration is encouraging domestic mining for cobalt and recycling of metals to try to build up the US source and not to be so reliant on China…The next major, untapped source for cobalt and lithium after the DRC is thought to be Indonesia. Guess what? That country is undergoing a mining stampede, led by companies that hail from… Beijing.

Chinese mine operators overseeing cobalt mining in Africa can monitor and control on-site activities from their mobile phone or laptop in China in real time, according to engineers at a state-owned company that runs these mines…This unprecedented instant access to production data is made possible with cutting-edge information technology to help China secure supplies of cobalt, an essential element for the electric car industry that boosts the energy storage density, life cycle and safety of lithium-ion batteries…The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) produces 70 per cent of the world’s cobalt. More than 80 per cent of the DRC’s cobalt mines are now owned by Chinese companies, according to industrial estimates…In recent years, China has had immediate access to the operational data from almost all the equipment on site in these mines, which are mostly in remote areas, thanks to the large-scale application of smart sensors and high-speed communication technology. A manager in Beijing, for instance, can learn the position, speed and load of each truck while sitting in a cafe in Beijing with a smartphone in hand…The company, with headquarters near the Forbidden City, is a subsidiary of Norinco, China’s largest arms exporter, and has made one of the largest investments in DRC’s cobalt mines…China, the world’s largest producer of lithium batteries, feels “deeply insecure” about the cobalt supply, according to a government study…Driven by the electric car boom, the international trade volume of cobalt-related minerals between China and the DRC had already reached 95 per cent of the world’s total by 2020, according to the study conducted by China’s natural resources ministry. China has almost no cobalt reserves at home…In a cobalt mine, the diverse equipment includes ore excavators and automated machines for selection and fine processing. Chinese engineers have installed about 1,000 monitoring and data collection terminals in each of its mines in the DRC…These terminals report the work status data to Beijing as frequently as 10 times a second…DRC’s total cobalt output recorded a more than 20 per cent annual increase to more than 120,000 tonnes last year, according to the US Geological Survey…Chinese mining companies in DRC have established their own security forces. They have also hired local police to protect their workers and production sites, according to openly available information…China’s mining rights in DRC were mostly bought from Western companies over the last decade.

Chinese automaker BYD Co. is considering building a battery plant in the US but doesn’t currently plan on selling its electric cars there, a top executive said, while laying out a case for tweaks to Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act that seeks to limit reliance on Asia’s biggest economy…As an automaker with large manufacturing capabilities and a vertically integrated supply chain stretching from batteries to chips, BYD stands to lose from Washington’s efforts to rebalance the sector away from China. The US Inflation Reduction Act, which President Joe Biden signed into law in August, is pushing EV makers globally to produce more vehicles in North America and secure the key minerals for them outside of China. Li said the IRA threatens EV uptake in the US, although she welcomed the country’s efforts to strengthen its own supply chain. The legislation has been widely criticized by carmakers and EV battery makers in Europe, China, South Korea and Japan…Li was speaking to Bloomberg from Chile, where BYD is in talks to enter into a mining project and applying for permits to process lithium into cathodes for batteries. BYD is also looking to invest in African lithium projects, although it recognizes the infrastructure shortfalls.

Honda Motor Co said on Thursday that Chinese battery giant CATL would supply batteries for seven years for its electric vehicles (EV) in China…The Japanese automaker said the Chinese firm would provide 123 GWh worth of batteries starting in 2024 through 2030 for the Honda's e:N Series…The announcement is part of the two companies' deepening cooperation. They said in 2020 they would develop battery technologies and research a battery recycling business…For the United States, Honda said in August it would build a new $4.4 billion lithium-ion battery plant there with South Korean battery supplier LG Energy Solution Ltd.

General Motors is moving ahead with plans to install as many as 40,000 electric vehicle chargers in, mostly, rural parts of America. This comes as GM plans to sell exclusively zero-emission passenger vehicles by 2035…These will not be so-called “Level 3” fast chargers — the sort that can charge an EV to 80% of its battery capacity in 30 minutes or so — but will be slower “Level 2” chargers, albeit relatively powerful ones. They will go in places where EV drivers might leave their vehicles parked for a couple of hours such as parks, sports venues or downtown shopping districts. The chargers will have industry-standard J1772 charging plugs that can be used by most electric vehicles, not just GM (GM) models…There are currently about 43,000 charging stations of this type in America. If all 40,000 units are installed, GM’s program would nearly double the current number of stations…GM is working with EV charger company Flo to build and install the chargers. The chargers will carry Ultium branding, GM’s name for its electric vehicle and charging ventures, as well as the name of the dealership that sponsored the charging location…Most EV owners charge their vehicles at home overnight but publicly accessible chargers are widely seen as crucial to helping sell electric vehicles because people want to see that they have other opportunities to charge. 

BP Plc on Thursday said its British electric vehicle charging business bp pulse will install high-speed charge points at around 70 Marks & Spencer retail outlets…The oil major is stepping up the pace of liquidating fossil-fuel assets to raise funds to invest in renewable-energy projects amid a global push for decarbonisation by energy firms…The first pilot charging sites are open at M&S Maidstone Eclipse and Southgate stores, with an initial target to install around 900 points, adding up to 40,000 kilowatt-hours of charging capacity within the next two years…Meanwhile, BP plans to invest up to 1 billion pounds ($1.22 billion) in UK EV charging infrastructure by 2030.

China’s CMOC Group Ltd hit back at what it called “wild overcharges” from Congo’s state mining company Gecamines, which is demanding compensation for higher copper and cobalt reserves at its Tenke Fungurume mine in the country…Congo suspects CMOC understated the mine’s reserves to reduce the amount of royalties it pays to Gecamines, which holds 20% of Tenke Fungurume Mining (TFM). CMOC, previously known as China Molybdenum, denies having done so…“If we have to evaluate all the lost revenue, we are beyond $7 billion,” Gecamines deputy director general Leon Mwine Kabiena said. “We told them CMOC that if they didn’t have enough money to pay the full amount, they should look at how to compensate with the shares and deposits.”…Now Gecamines is asking CMOC for between $2 billion and $2.5 billion in cash and a bigger stake of between 49% and 51% in TFM, an official close to the negotiations said, declining to be named because the talks are confidential.