ActiveThis topic is developing steadily with relevant new reporting.
ActiveThis topic is developing steadily with relevant new reporting.
FollowElectric-vehicle battery lithium and cobalt supply chains
The DRC escalates from cobalt export curbs to quotas and a strategic reserve
Key takeaways
- Cobalt and lithium are no longer treated as passive commodity inputs, because producer-country controls and strategic reserves now influence EV battery costs and availability.
- Battery chemistry changes and recycling can reduce cobalt intensity, but they do not remove the need for lithium or for concentrated midstream processing capacity.
- The current supply-chain contest is being shaped simultaneously by Congolese intervention, Chinese refining power, and diversification pushes from Australia, Indonesia and the Americas.
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