Cobalt, Critical, Strategic and Rare Earth Minerals and Metals – Page 50

U.K. Fraud Unit Finds Bribe Network Behind World’s Cobalt Hub – by Michael J. Kavanagh (Bloomberg News – July 14, 2021)

July 15, 2021

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/

(Bloomberg) — U.K. prosecutors have told Swiss authorities they have proof of an alleged money-laundering ring spanning from Africa to Europe that paid almost $380 million in cash bribes to authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Companies repeatedly bribed officials to further their business interests in the mineral-rich nation, according to the Swiss court judgment that cited information from U.K. prosecutors. Congo is Africa’s biggest producer of copper and supplies about 70% of the world’s cobalt, a critical input for the batteries that power electric vehicles.

The $379 million that was allegedly siphoned off in bribes over a five-year period is more than Congo’s total spending on health care last year.

Could rare earths peak in Tanzania? – by Scarlett Evans (Mining Technology – July 14, 2021)

July 14, 2021

https://www.mining-technology.com/

A fast-growing staple of the green energy revolution, rare earth elements are used to produce electric magnets found in everything from electric vehicles (EVs) to direct drive wind turbines.

With tightening global emissions restrictions driving up demand for EVs, cashing in on deposits of rare earth materials is a savvy way to secure a seat at the table of the blossoming green economy, and finding alternative sources to China has become a priority amidst continued trade tensions.

Peak Resources’ Ngualla project is based on one of the largest and highest-grade undeveloped neodymium praseodymium (NdPr) deposits in the world, located in southern Tanzania. Rare earths remain a newly-emerging product and while deposits in Tanzania are high-grade, Peak Resources’ project marks the first rare earths mine in the country.

Can Environmentalists Handle the Truth about Mining? – by Jack Lifton (Investor Intel – July 13, 2021)

July 14, 2021

https://investorintel.com/

Solar panels and wind turbines cannot even begin to supply the concentrated
power needed for smelters, steel furnaces, copper refining, aluminum
production, and myriads of other energy intensive necessary processes.

The recovery of the amount of non-fuel natural resources necessary for the world, or even just the USA, or the EU, or China, to go “green” would simultaneously entail the construction of a massively enlarged minerals processing industry the likes of which the world has not seen since the creation and growth of the steel industry, which is and will remain the structural backbone of our civilization.

Much of the sourcing and processing infrastructure that is needed for its own domestic consumption of natural resources has already been accomplished by China.

But for the rest of the world, such resource recovery and processing onto useful forms at that “greening” scale would require the diversion of a significant percentage of national GDPs for decades.

EU, Ukraine sign ‘strategic partnership’ on raw materials – by Frédéric Simon (EURACTIV.com – July 13, 2021)

July 13, 2021

https://www.euractiv.com/

Kyiv will be invited on Tuesday (13 July) to join EU industrial alliances on batteries and raw materials, with a view to develop an entire value chain of the extraction, refining and recycling of minerals in Ukraine to supply the EU market for electric cars and digital equipment.

European Commission Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič has travelled to Ukraine, where he was expected to sign a new “strategic partnership” on raw materials with Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal.

“We decided that we should open a new chapter in our strategic relationship and this is a closer cooperation in raw materials, green and digital technologies,” Šefčovič told a group of journalists on Monday before boarding a plane to Kyiv.

Rare earths are now being mined in Canada – by Shane Lasley (North of 60 Mining News – July 9, 2021)

July 13, 2021July 13, 2021

https://www.miningnewsnorth.com/

On June 28, First Nations mining contractor Nahanni Construction Ltd. dug a scoop of ore from the North T open pit at Vital Metals Ltd.’s Nechalacho project in Northwest Territories that marked a momentous milestone – Canada is now a rare earths-producing nation.

This first REE ore mined at Nechalacho comes just two years after Australia-based Vital came up with a unique plan to take advantage of relatively small but high-grade mineralization coming to the surface at the project to rapidly produce the rare earths widely used in today’s high-tech devices.

North T has 101,000 metric tons of resources averaging 9.01% total rare earth oxides, compared to other global deposits that tend to average around 1% TREO or less. The high-grade North T ore being mined by Nahanni Construction will be further upgraded with an ore sorter delivered to Nechalacho this spring.

The US wants to make EV batteries without these foreign metals. Should it? – by Maddie Stone (Grist.org – June 30, 2021)

July 5, 2021

https://grist.org/

Nickel and cobalt have precarious international supply chains, but eliminating them from batteries raises tough questions.

The electric vehicle or EV revolution owes its existence to lithium batteries, and those batteries have a cocktail of specialized minerals to thank for their high performance.

In most cases, that cocktail’s ingredient list includes cobalt and nickel, minerals that help deliver the long lifespan and range that consumers increasingly demand of EVs.

But with hundreds of millions of new EVs expected to hit the streets in the coming decades, skyrocketing demand for nickel and cobalt could strain mineral supply chains. Fearing a supply shortage that would slow the EV boom, the U.S. Department of Energy is now proposing that we eliminate cobalt and nickel from batteries altogether.

CHART: Study predicts over 400% increase in copper, lithium, nickel battery demand – by Editor (Mining.com – June 30, 2021)

July 5, 2021

https://www.mining.com/

BloombergNEF has upped its predictions for annual demand for lithium-ion batteries by more than a third from its previous forecast on the back of expectations for rapid growth in the passenger vehicle segment.

BNEF predicts annual demand for lithium-ion batteries will pass 2.7 terawatt-hours per year by 2030 – a 35% increase from the analytics company’s forecast made last year. Passenger vehicles will represent 72% of the overall market as sales race to 14 million by 2025 from just over 3 million last year.

BNEF expects China to extend its lead in the battery supply chain — particularly processing and refining. The country accounts for almost half of new lithium hydroxide projects coming online this year and has 55% of the world’s nickel sulfate market and 80% of the global market for cobalt sulfate, according to the report.

Move to net zero ‘inevitably means more mining’ – by Jonathan Amos (BBC.com – May 24, 2021)

June 28, 2021

https://www.bbc.com/

The public will need to accept greater mining activity if the world is to meet the challenge of going green.Resource experts say the current supply of various metals and minerals cannot support a global economy producing net zero carbon emissions.

Extraction rates have to be raised, the scientists argue, if only in the short term. Eventually, large-scale recycling should be able to satisfy the demand for key commodities such as lithium.

New mining initiatives are often met with resistance because of the negative impacts they can have on the wider environment and on health. And some activities have drawn particular ire because they’ve become associated with labour abuses.

U.S. looks to Canada for critical minerals to support EV battery plans – by Riley Beggin (Detroit News/The Columbian – June 27, 2021)

June 28, 2021

https://www.columbian.com/

WASHINGTON — U.S. policymakers hoping to power an electric vehicle boom acknowledge the country lacks a robust and reliable supply chain for the minerals needed to power next-generation cars.

That reality — exposed by the economic aftershocks delivered by the COVID-19 pandemic — looms as a national security risk the administration plans to remedy, in part, by working with like-minded nations. Increasingly, Canada appears to be among the first in line.

The White House is signaling plans to increase collaboration between the U.S. and Canada on critical minerals, according to a recent supply chain review that highlighted the country’s mineral assets.

Report outlines what Canada must do to secure supply of critical minerals – by Valentina Ruiz Leotaud (Northern Miner – June 24, 2021)

June 25, 2021

https://www.northernminer.com/

The Standing Committee on Natural Resources has presented a report before Canada’s House of Commons that stresses the importance of securing a supply of critical minerals, particularly in the face of China’s dominance.

Currently, the Asian economic giant owns as much as 80% of the global processing capacity for rare earths, as it has been investing for decades in acquiring strategic mineral assets across the world, and according to data gathered by the committee, it is likely to hold about 67% of the global capacity to build lithium-ion batteries by 2030.

Based on the information and feedback received from industry, First Nations, research institutions, market analysts and other experts, the Committee said it is time for the Canadian government to step up its game, leverage the Canadian mining industry’s high environmental, social and governance standards and involvement of Indigenous communities, and take concrete steps to reduce the country’s dependence on foreign markets while positioning itself in global markets.

A Mining Startup’s Rush for Underwater Metals Comes With Deep Risks – by Todd Woody (Yahoo/Finance/Bloomberg – June 2021)

June 25, 2021

https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/

(Bloomberg) — A seabed mining startup, DeepGreen Metals Inc., has successfully sold itself to investors as a game-changing source of minerals to make electric car batteries that can be obtained in abundance—and at great profit—while minimizing the environmental destruction of mining on land.

But there’s strong scientific evidence that the seabed targeted for mining is in fact one of the most biodiverse places on the planet—and increasing reason to worry about DeepGreen’s tantalizing promises.

Bloomberg Green’s examination of corporate and legal filings, regulatory records and other documents raises questions about DeepGreen’s business plans.

Brazil to ease licencing of newly listed strategic minerals – by Cecilia Jamasmie (Mining.com – June 23, 2021)

June 23, 2021

https://www.mining.com/

The Brazilian government has issued a list of specific metals which production aims to boost through a recently established policy that seeks to identify projects of minerals deemed of special interest to the country.

The so-called Policy for Strategic Minerals guarantees support to companies involved in the exploration and mining of a variety of commodities, including potash, iron ore, gold and battery metals, such as lithium, cobalt and nickel.

The government backing comes mostly in the form of easing the licencing process by facilitating, for example, the dialogue between the environmental agency responsible for conducting the environmental licensing process and authorities such as the managing bodies of Conservation Units, the National Indian Foundation (Funai), the National Institute for Colonization and Agrarian Reform (Incra) and the National Institute of Historic and Artistic Heritage (Iphan).

Federal government needs to protect critical minerals industry as China tightens grasp, report says – by Jesse Snyder (National Post – June 21, 2021)

June 22, 2021

https://nationalpost.com/

Full Report: https://bit.ly/3qkvGSt

The study by the Commons natural resources committee details how Ottawa has failed to secure supply chains for the strategic minerals, which could have major consequences

OTTAWA — The federal government is due for a “wake-up call” on the need to protect Canada’s critical minerals industry, as China tightens its grip on supplies of rare earths and other crucial materials, a new Parliamentary report says.

The minerals, which include magnesium, lithium and cobalt, are used to make electric car batteries, mobile phone components, solar panels and guided missiles.

A study by the House of Commons natural resources committee, tabled last week, details how Ottawa has failed to secure supply chains for the strategic minerals — a shortcoming that could have major consequences as next-generation technologies take up a growing share of the global economy.

ENERGY TRANSITION: US battery strategy aims to eliminate nickel, cobalt – by Andrea Hotter (Metal Bulletin – June 17, 2021)

June 17, 2021

https://www.metalbulletin.com/

Full Report: https://bit.ly/3cPTRCP

The United States has published a strategy for lithium-ion battery manufacturing which calls for the elimination of cobalt and nickel from the cathode by the end of the current decade.

It intends to achieve this through research and development into new technologies, with the goal of establishing a domestic battery supply chain that meets the demands of the growing electric vehicle (EV) and electrical grid storage markets, the government said in the strategy document.

The blueprint has been developed by the Federal Consortium for Advanced Batteries, which is led by the government’s departments of Energy, Defense, Commerce and State, and includes many other organizations across the US government.

The U.S. has grand ambitions to conquer the global EV market — it can’t win without Canada – – by Ryan Castilloux (Financial Post – June 16, 2021)

June 17, 2021

https://financialpost.com/

Ryan Castilloux is managing director of Adamas Intelligence, which provides research on strategic materials and minerals.

A US$174-billion U.S. plan to spur domestic production and sales of U.S.-made electric vehicles while bolstering domestic supply chains, from raw materials to parts, dovetails with allies Canada and Australia’s ambitions to become leading suppliers of raw materials to parts.

The plan is part of the massive US$2-trillion spending plan unveiled by U.S. President Joe Biden in March, that aims at creating millions of “good jobs,” rebuilding the nation’s infrastructure, and positioning the U.S. to “out-compete China.”

From a raw materials perspective, there are four main facets of interest for the Canadian auto sector in the U.S.’s grand ambition to win the EV market.