Eurasian Resources Group (ERG) has declared force majeure on deliveries of battery material cobalt from its Metalkol operation due to the Democratic Republic of Congo's temporary export ban, two sources familiar with the matter said…ERG is the third largest cobalt producing company in Congo, which itself is the world's top producer of the mineral used to make the lithium-ion batteries that power electric vehicles…The Luxembourg-based company has had to declare force majeure - a status that shows unexpected circumstances prevents them from meeting contract obligations - because it has no cobalt stocks outside Congo, unlike other producers, one of the sources said…The central African country, the world's largest cobalt producer is also considering introducing cobalt export quotas…Metalkol's cobalt production amounts to 7% of the global total at more than 280,000 last year, according to Darton, a specialist supplier of cobalt metal products…It was not known when exactly the force majeure was invoked, but cobalt prices in China, the world's top cobalt consumer, have jumped as buyers have become increasingly worried about supplies, cobalt industry sources said…Prices of cobalt, used to make electric vehicle batteries, as assessed by Shanghai Metals Markets (SMM) have jumped to 200,000 yuan , up more than 20% since before Congo imposed an export ban…Congo's government eventually plans to introduce quotas on exports of the metal, which are going to be negotiated during the export suspension period, according to sources.

A Chinese state-controlled mining company mothballed a cobalt processing plant in the Democratic Republic of Congo only 15 months after opening it due to a historic slump in the price of the battery metal…MMG Ltd. said it suspended operations at its new facility at the Kinsevere mine in December 2024 due to “unfavorable cobalt market conditions.” The government of Congo – which dominates production of the material used in electric vehicles – introduced a surprise four-month export ban last week to rein in oversupply and assert more control over the metal’s price…The company – in which China Minmetals Corp. owns a 67% stake – recently completed a project expected to cost as much as $600 million to increase copper output and start cobalt production at Kinsevere…Cobalt output in Congo – which accounts for about three-quarters of global production – has soared in recent years, as China’s CMOC Group Ltd. ramped up output at two large mines in the Central African nation causing supply to outpace demand, sending prices tumbling…On Feb. 24, the country imposed the shock ban on shipments while longer term policies to balance the market, including export quotas, remain under consideration…Prices for cobalt hydroxide — the main product exported from Congo — have risen by a third following the ban...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is set to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump today to sign a critical minerals deal as a way of securing continued U.S. backing in the war against Russia…The clue is in the word "deposits". Finding mineral deposits is the easy part. Mining them is more difficult. Processing them is more difficult still…But the deal is a sign that after a century of oil politics we're now entering a new age of metal politics…Ukraine does have confirmed reserves of other critical metals such as titanium and lithium but getting them out of the ground is a whole bigger challenge…China dominates so many critical mineral supply chains not because it has the largest ore reserves but because it has mastered the mid-stream part of the production cycle…It's also starting to leverage this technical know-how by restricting exports of critical metal processing technology, making it even harder for the West to catch up…China's dominance is why the United States and Europe are so desperate to secure their own critical mineral supply chains…But it's a metallic revolution that is driving that hunger…A 20th century landline telephone only needed a length of copper wire to work. An Apple iPhone still contains copper but it also needs aluminium, cobalt, gold, lithium, tin, tungsten and a sprinkling of rare earths for you to be able to make a call…Now consider what goes into a more advanced bit of technology such as an F-35 stealth fighter jet…Metals are no longer just bits of hard stuff to bang into shape but are used in increasingly complex combinations in what is more akin to inorganic chemistry than traditional metal-working…The poster-child for modern metallurgy is the lithium-ion battery, which comes in multiple chemistries each using a slightly different combination of metal inputs…The first commercial battery only appeared in 1991 but the technology has rapidly evolved to become the core driver of the transition to electric vehicles, which is why the West is racing to build out its own battery metals supply chain…And while Trump may not think much of electric vehicles, he knows how important metals are to the U.S. military. Indeed, it was Trump in his first term who declared critical minerals a national emergency…Critical metals have become the new bargaining chip on the geopolitical card table…Trump has also set his sights on Greenland…Vladimir Putin has been quick to join the metallic poker game…Which rather begs the question of whether Trump may not be better looking closer to home if he's really that keen on getting rare earths and other critical metals…Canada has lots of them, is a mining friendly jurisdiction and has extensive metals processing capacity…But Trump seems to have thrown out the previous administration's concept of "friend-shoring". Or maybe it's the list of friends that has changed…As metals become a geopolitical currency, Ukraine is not the only country looking to play the metals card…You're going to be hearing a lot more about a bunch of elements in the periodic table that you've never heard of, even though you're using them every day.

What does your smartphone have in common with a solar panel, or an EV battery, or a piece of military equipment? They're all made using critical minerals — an essential ingredient in powering the modern technology that we use every day…"This era that we're moving into that's going to be defined by renewably generated electricity and digital technology. Can't make that stuff without critical metals."…Some trade experts call critical minerals the "bedrocks" of a new era in technological advancement — not unlike how the invention of the steam engine during the first industrial revolution dramatically changed the world, powering boats, trains and factory machines…The U.S. and China are fighting for global tech supremacy, with each vying for cutting-edge technology and the resources used to make it. China has the advantage of being a mining nation — but perhaps more importantly, it's a world leader in processing raw minerals from other countries…The U.S. used to be a number one mining power, but in the '70s and '80s, "they basically got tired of all the environmental damage that came along with that," explained Beiser, the author. "Mining is very destructive. It generates a lot of pollution and so on."…"China, which was just opening up its economy at that time, said, fine, we'll do it. We're happy to dig this stuff up on our own land and build the refineries here in China. And also they were just very foresighted," he said…Now, China is leveraging its powerful position by restricting mineral exports to the U.S., and the U.S. is trying to reduce reliance on its adversary…That's why Trump has shown interest in annexing mineral-rich territories like Canada and Greenland. It's also why the U.S. and Ukraine are negotiating a deal to have Ukraine give the U.S. access to its minerals in exchange for military aid. Ukraine is relying on the deal to finance its post-war recovery…"Critical minerals are a matter of national security for the U.S.," said Steyn. "I don't think it's a reason for alarm, but it is something we should be cognizant of."

Over history, gold and silver coins have been major trade darlings, and can still spur investor frenzy depending on how they're faring in markets. But as industries and economies deepen their dependence on critical minerals, these metals appear to be becoming as valuable as any commodity or currency…the Ukraine-U.S. talks show critical minerals can be used as a negotiating tool as countries scramble to secure supply chains amid an uncertain economic climate…Critical minerals are helping drive modern economies because they're essential in the production of smartphones, computers, electric vehicles, renewable energy systems, batteries and satellite systems…Under the previous U.S. administration of Joe Biden, hundreds of millions of dollars were on offer for Canadian firms mining or processing critical minerals…The U.S. Department of Defence funded several projects north of the border with no strings attached in a bid to boost the North American supply and reduce dependence on China…The Trump administration, however, seems to be favouring a different approach to secure the U.S. supply chain…Prime Minister Justin Trudeau recently told business leaders at the Canada-U.S. Economic Summit in Toronto that Trump's threat to annex Canada "is a real thing" motivated by his desire to tap into the country's critical minerals…Ontario and B.C. have threatened to slap export bans on critical minerals if the U.S. maintains its 25 per cent tariffs, launched Tuesday, on Canadian goods…The federal government has yet to make that threat, but it has intervened in the mining industry before in the name of geopolitics…London said Canada has a lot of leverage because the U.S. doesn't have many options if it's looking for supplies outside China. "Where else are they going to get it?..."Mining is not the big cost — it's the transportation and movement. Are they going to buy raw materials in Australia and get boatloads into the Panama Canal?" London asked. "It's a very complex supply chain. And while we're talking and continuing in a trade war, China is implementing another five year plan."…London said Canada should put its resources into processing and manufacturing, and not mine critical minerals…"As long as it remains in the ground, it's an advantage … We shouldn't be mining it and selling it to others," he said.

As the global demand for secure and ethically sourced critical minerals grows, Fortune Minerals Ltd.'s NICO project is poised to offer a strategically important North American supply of bismuth, cobalt, copper, and gold…Skyrocketing bismuth prices resulting from China's state-controlled export restrictions, coupled with basement-level cobalt prices that prompted the Democratic Republic of Congo to halt exports of this battery metal for four months, underscore the multi-metal value of the proposed NICO mine in Canada's Northwest Territories and associated refinery in Alberta…From a purely critical minerals perspective, NICO is a bismuth-cobalt-copper project hedged by significant quantities of gold…While cobalt and gold have traditionally been considered the primary economic drivers for NICO, the economic and national security value of its bismuth cannot be overstated. The NICO deposit hosts the single largest accumulation of bismuth known on Earth, accounting for 12% of global reserves of this critical mineral used in a wide variety of automotive and metallurgical applications…Adding to the potential commercial uses of bismuth, U.S. Department of Energy national laboratories have made breakthroughs on powerful manganese-bismuth permanent magnets that could serve as an alternative to rare earth magnets in EV motors, wind turbines, military hardware, and other applications…China, which controls 80% of the world's bismuth supply, has put in place state-controlled restrictions on the exports of this critical metal…China also happens to dominate global cobalt supply. While more than 75% of the world's cobalt supply is mined in DRC, roughly 60% of the cobalt mining in the African country is controlled by Chinese state-owned enterprises. China-owned companies also control 80% of the world's refined cobalt and 90% of the production of cobalt chemicals for batteries, superalloys for aerospace, magnets, catalysts, and other applications…Fortune Minerals NICO project, which has received financial support from the U.S. Department of Defense and the Canadian government, has the potential to deliver a reliable supply of bismuth and cobalt into North American markets that are insulated from price fluctuations due to the gold and copper that would also be produced at the proposed Northwest Territories mine and Alberta refinery.