Cobalt, Critical, Strategic and Rare Earth Minerals and Metals – Page 29

Doug Ford says this mining region is a top priority. Ottawa doesn’t necessarily agree – by Alex Ballingall, Tonda MacCharles and Kristin Rushowy (Toronto Star – July 12, 2023)

July 12, 2023

https://www.thestar.com/

Federal Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson cast doubt on hopes for a mining bonanza in Ontario’s “Ring of Fire,” saying there are better projects that can be developed easier in areas closer to existing infrastructure.

OTTAWA—Federal Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson cast doubt on hopes for a mining bonanza in Ontario’s “Ring of Fire,” saying there are better projects that can be developed easier in areas closer to existing infrastructure.

It’s the latest sign the Trudeau government isn’t yet convinced the region in the province’s vast, environmentally sensitive northern peatlands is the best place for new mining, even as it tries to make Canada an international powerhouse in critical minerals needed to power the global shift to a greener, low-carbon economy.

Report: Critical minerals supply chain puts speed of energy transition at risk – by Kelsey Tamborrino (Politico.com – July 2023)

July 12, 2023

https://www.politico.com/

The world’s supply of critical minerals is vulnerable to disruptions that could slow the transition to clean energy because their mining and refining are concentrated in the hands of a few companies and countries, an international renewable energy body said on Tuesday.

Those minerals, used to build clean technologies from wind turbines to electric cars, have drawn increasing interest from national governments eager to cut emissions and fight climate change — an effort that could be slowed if countries don’t work together to diversify the sources of the materials, the International Renewable Energy Agency warned in a new report provided to POLITICO ahead of its release later this week.

China launches Mineral War against USA by limiting exports of two products – by Girish Linganna (Northlines.com – July 12, 2023)

July 12, 2023

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China’s recent move to limit the export of two minerals crucial for semiconductors, solar panels, and missile systems serves as a significant reminder of its strong control over global mineral resources. This action also serves as a warning, indicating China’s readiness to utilize these resources as part of its growing competition and tensions with the United States.

China holds a significant position in the global supply chain for essential minerals used in electric vehicles (EVs) and renewable energy. Approximately two-thirds of the world’s lithium and cobalt, vital for EV batteries, undergo processing in China.

China just fought back in the semiconductor exports war. Here’s what you need to know. – by Zeyi Yang (MIT Technology Review – July 10, 2023)

July 10, 2023

https://www.technologyreview.com/

The country aims to restrict the supply of gallium and germanium, two materials used in computer chips and other products. But experts say it won’t have the desired impact.

China has been on the receiving end of semiconductor export restrictions for years. Now, it is striking back with the same tactic. On July 3, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce announced that the export of gallium and germanium, two elements used in producing chips, solar panels, and fiber optics, will soon be subject to a license system for national security reasons.

That means exports of the materials will need to be approved by the government, and Western companies that rely on them could have a hard time securing a consistent supply from China.

Column: China flexes critical metals muscles with export curbs – by Andy Home (Reuters – July 10, 2023)

July 10, 2023

https://www.reuters.com/

China’s threat to curb exports of gallium and germanium from the start of August marks an escalation in the global competition for critical minerals and metals. Both are esoteric metals with multiple applications across a spectrum of cutting-edge technologies, particularly silicon chips for the semiconductor sector.

As such, China’s move seems a calibrated response to the US Chips Act and the increasing pressure on US allies to restrict sales of sensitive microchip technology to the country. The announcement a day before the US Independence Day holidays was a symbolically-charged reminder that the West is highly dependent on China for many raw material inputs to its high-tech industrial base.

Beijing jabs in US-China tech fight with chip material export curbs – by Amy Lv and Brenda Goh (Reuters – July 4, 2023)

July 5, 2023

https://www.reuters.com/

BEIJING/SHANGHAI, July 4 (Reuters) – Companies caught out by China’s decision to restrict exports of two metals widely used in semiconductors and electric vehicles were racing to secure supplies on Tuesday as some industry suppliers worried that curbs on rare earth exports could follow.

Monday’s abrupt announcement of controls from Aug. 1 on exports of some gallium and germanium products has ramped up a trade war with the United States and could potentially cause more disruption to global supply chains.

Cobalt Red: a regressive, deeply flawed account of Congo’s mining industry – by Sarah Katz-Lavigne and Espérant Mwishamali Lukobo (Open Democracy – July 3, 2023)

July 4, 2023

https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/

Billed as an exposé, Cobalt Red simply rehashes old stereotypes and colonial perceptions of the DRC

Cobalt Red: how the blood of the Congo powers our lives, by Siddharth Kara, has been making waves. Released in April and tailored for a non-specialist audience, it has quickly become a New York Times and Publishers Weekly bestseller, as well as a bestseller in Amazon’s African Politics category.

The book centres on the mineral cobalt, currently sought after the world over for the production of high-end batteries. More than 70% of the world’s supply originates from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Kara’s project, he says, is to expose the trade’s dirty secrets for all of us to see.

US measure would ban products containing mineral mined with child labor in Congo – by Taiwo Adebayo (ABC News/Associated Press – July 3, 2023)

July 4, 2023

https://abcnews.go.com/

New U.S. legislation would ban imported products containing critical green transition minerals mined by child labor in Congo

ABUJA, Nigeria — A measure has been introduced in the U.S. House to ban imported products containing minerals critical to electric vehicle batteries but mined through child labor and other abusive conditions in Congo, where China has enormous mining stakes.

The bill targets China, which sponsor Republican Rep. Chris Smith of New Jersey says uses forced labor and exploits children to mine cobalt in the impoverished but resource-rich central African country.

First Nations group prepared to invest up to $10 million in Temiskaming battery metals recycling venture – by Staff (Northern Ontario Business – June 26, 2023)

June 28, 2023

https://www.northernontariobusiness.com/

Three Fires Group to take equity stake in Electra Battery Materials

Electra Battery Materials, the developers of a Temiskaming cobalt refinery, have come out with a financing package to finish construction of the plant and kick-start the development of a battery recycling operation.

The Toronto company’s new joint venture Indigenous partner, the Three Fires Group, is tentatively prepared to invest $10 million or half as part of a total $20-million arrangement for this venture, according to an Electra spokesperson.

Australia taps global partners in landmark critical minerals strategy (Reuters – June 19, 2023)

June 19, 2023

https://www.reuters.com/

MELBOURNE, June 20 (Reuters) – Australia, one of the world’s biggest suppliers of raw minerals, unfurled a landmark strategy on Tuesday that outlines how it will work with investors and international partners to build a critical minerals processing industry for the energy transition.

The Labor government strategy aims to see Australia as a significant producer by 2030 of raw and processed critical minerals that are key to the energy transition, on its path to becoming a renewable superpower.

OPINION: Mining the Arctic’s critical minerals is vital for Canada’s sovereignty, Northern prosperity – by Sean Boyd (Globe and Mail – June 12, 2023)

June 15, 2023

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Sean Boyd is executive chair of the board of Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd.

Canada launched a new Arctic and Northern Policy Framework in 2019, supported by $700-million in dedicated funding. It correctly calls on all of Canada to strengthen our sovereignty, while building the kind of economic future northerners want, and doing it in a way that protects the environment. This was a positive first step.

But it is missing a component: the development of the Arctic’s abundant mineral resources, including critical minerals crucial for the decarbonized economy of the future. That must be an essential element of any Arctic strategy.

Critical minerals stocks are now worth more than gold – by Peter Ker and Vesna Poljak (Australian Financial Review – June 13, 2023)

June 15, 2023

https://www.afr.com/

Tony Rovira was about to board a plane from Perth to Melbourne when laboratory tests of eight lithium drill holes sent shares in his company, Azure Minerals, soaring more than 40 per cent. “I will definitely have a glass of champagne on the plane to celebrate the great work of our exploration teams,” he told The Australian Financial Review from Perth Airport on Tuesday.

They can afford the expensive champagne in Perth these days; the city is at the epicentre of a boom that has lifted the value of major, ASX-listed critical minerals companies to $86.2 billion from $8.6 billion in the past decade.

OPINION: Deep-sea mining for battery minerals is coming – thanks to a Canadian firm – by Laura Trethewey (Globe and Mail – June 15, 2023)

June 15, 2023

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/

Laura Trethewey is the author of The Deepest Map: The High-Stakes Race to Chart the World’s Oceans coming this July.

On July 9, a United Nations body is set to start accepting applications for deep-sea commercial mining. In the most likely scenario, big machines that resemble army tanks plow across the deep plains, crushing all the life beneath them as they extract manganese nodules, which contain nickel, cobalt, copper and rare earth elements, from the seabed.

Mining proponents cite a desire to save the planet: the rise of carbon-saving technology and predicted demand for metals to make electric-vehicle batteries and wind turbines.

The Critical Minerals Crisis – by Jack Lifton (Investor Intel – June 6, 2023)

June 8, 2023

https://investorintel.com/

The Critical Minerals Crisis excerpt — “We are now at an inflection point for our society. If we can secure the supplies and the processing capacity for the minerals critical for the technologies we now take for granted in our daily lives, then our nations will flourish and grow.

If not, then our standard of living will decline, and those who have the critical minerals and the industrial bases to refine and fabricate them surge ahead of us. Our politicians and policymakers are woefully ignorant of this reality. This is the greatest danger of all to our lifestyle and security.” — Jack Lifton, Co-Founder & Co-Chairman, Critical Minerals Institute.

Australia moves to find new critical minerals partners but risks China’s ire – by Jonathan Peralman (The Straits Times – June 8, 2023)

June 8, 2023

https://www.straitstimes.com/

SYDNEY – For decades, Australia has been a crucial supplier of the iron ore that has helped to quench China’s insatiable appetite for steel. This massive flow of iron ore – which invoked more than A$150 billion (S$135 billion) a year of sales – enabled China to build apartment blocks, shopping centres and infrastructure projects around the country as its economy expanded.

But, in recent years, China has also invested in other Australian resources for its transformation into a technology superpower. Today, China is a major extractor and processor of critical minerals such as rare earths that are used to produce electric car batteries, superconductors, mobile phones and other high-end technologies.