As demand for lithium-ion batteries surges, the price of the once
little-known element cobalt is rising rapidly. Now many companies are beginning
to worry about their supply security. However, the supply of cobalt depends
largely on changes in the copper and nickel markets.
The price of the once little-known cobalt element is rising rapidly, and
some people are even worried that there will be a shortage of cobalt mineral
resources in the future. The surge in demand for lithium-ion batteries used in
electronic products and electric vehicles is the main reason for the rise in the
price of cobalt element. At the same time, companies are also beginning to There
are concerns about the security of its supply.
According to data from the United States Geological Survey, the current
price of metallic cobalt has more than doubled compared with 2017. Some
companies have responded to the sharp increase in cobalt prices and are looking
for ways to reduce supply chain costs. It is reported that Apple has begun
trying to purchase metallic cobalt directly from cobalt miners, and car
manufacturers such as BMW and Volkswagen have also taken similar measures.
According to a report from the UK-based Darden Commodities Exchange, demand
for cobalt in the automotive battery field is expected to increase by more than
40% in 2018. The development of electric vehicles and hybrid vehicles in the
Chinese and European markets has become an important demand factor, and Tesla
The gradual increase in Model 3 production will also become the main driving
force for the growth of demand for cobalt in the U.S. market.
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Although battery technology engineers can replace certain elements by
changing the design or using other elements, cobalt alone is difficult to
replace. Although there are some elements that can replace cobalt, they will
cause a loss of functionality during use.
Marc Grynberg, CEO of Umicore Materials, said in an interview: "There is no
element that can increase energy density better than nickel, and there is no
element better than cobalt that stabilizes all energy. So maybe you have heard
There's some technology news about replacing cobalt, but that's not going to
happen in the next 20 to 30 years because the existing skills can't do it
yet."
One potential problem now is that most of the world's cobalt mines come as
a by-product of mining for other metals. In 2017, approximately 69% of the
world's cobalt ore was obtained from copper mining, and 29% was a by-product of
nickel ore. Therefore, the supply of cobalt depends largely on changes in the
copper and nickel markets.
Now mining companies like ERG and Glencore are planning to re-evaluate
their cobalt mining operations, hoping to balance market supply and demand in
the short term, but if the electric vehicle market continues to develop at a
high speed, this short-term balance cannot remain stable.
Dutton pointed out in the report: "Although costs are expected to decline
as cobalt ore production increases by 2022, the production costs of electric
vehicles are expected to remain relatively close to the costs of traditional
internal combustion vehicles in the short term."
Although we often see the emergence of some new battery technologies, it is
still too far away to achieve true large-scale commercial use. In other words,
the world of lithium batteries will still be in the future. Let’s follow the
power management editor to learn about the relevant content.
In order to protect the environment, more and more countries and regions
are still pushing for new energy vehicles, so this has also forced the demand
for lithium batteries. To make lithium batteries, cobalt is indispensable.
Although scientists can change the design or use other elements to replace
certain elements, the only element cobalt is difficult to replace, which is also
the key to its price doubling every year.
One potential problem now is that most of the world's cobalt mines come as
a by-product of mining for other metals. In 2017, approximately 69% of the
world's cobalt ore was obtained from copper mining, and 29% was a by-product of
nickel ore. Therefore, the supply of cobalt depends largely on changes in the
copper and nickel markets.
Regarding the future of lithium batteries, Marc Grynberg, head of Umicore
Materials Company, said: There is no element that can increase energy density
better than nickel, and there is no element better than cobalt to stabilize all
energy. So it won’t happen in the next twenty or thirty years, and lithium
batteries are still king.
It has been previously reported that some mobile phone manufacturers have
prepared graphene batteries, which are a new generation of batteries to be
commercialized. Its biggest advantage is that the battery storage capacity of
the same volume is about 45% of that of lithium batteries, but it can It is
fully charged in 12 minutes and can maintain a high degree of stability in
environments up to 60 degrees Celsius. Looking at it now, we still have to
wait.
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