| Click on blue article title to read full story. | | | | Cobalt | | | | Financial Times - March 25, 2018 A pilot scheme to trace the world’s first “ethical cobalt” from small-scale mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo all the way to... The Better Cobalt pilot, which will be overseen by RCS Global, a UK supply-chain audit company, will electronically tag cobalt from five artisanal and semi-mechanised mines in Congo in what it says will be the first systematic attempt to trace the metal along an opaque supply chain…The project is a collaboration between several as-yet-unnamed “global brand” consumer companies, including two car manufacturers, as well as industry participants, including Huayou Cobalt, the world’s largest refiner, whose Congo DongFang Mining supplies Apple, among others. | | Hellenic Shipping News Worldwide - March 23, 2018 Miner Rio Tinto is selling its last remaining Australian coking coal asset, Kestrel, shifting growth into investments in metals and minerals for batteries and new economy applications. The company is close to a complete withdrawal from metallurgical coal, after divesting Hail Creek and other coal Miner Rio Tinto is selling its last remaining Australian coking coal asset, Kestrel, shifting growth into investments in metals and minerals for batteries and new economy applications….The Ventures unit will review projects past feasibility study considering a variety of investment entry possibilities, and leverage the group’s capital, operating expertise, exploration and marketing and logistics networks. Rio Tinto cites tin, lithium, cobalt, silver, nickel as metals with the biggest impact from new technology, using research from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. | | | | | EVs | | | | Nikkei Asian Review - March 25, 2018 CATL strengthens foothold in global supply chain backed by government policies supplies of cobalt. Congo, which is the source of more than half the world's cobalt, has been criticized for using child labor in mines. Much of the success of the electric vehicle will come down to the performance and price of rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, the costliest and heaviest component of the car…CATL calls itself "the first Chinese battery company to supply to the global industry chain." It has been producing batteries for BMW's X1 sport utility vehicle since 2012, as well as supplying to Volkswagen and Daimler. Now it is preparing a $2 billion initial public offering on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, much of which will be invested in a massive new plant in China…The new factory will raise CATL's capacity to 50 gigawatt-hours per year in 2020 from 11.8 GWh in 2017. That would put it ahead of Panasonic's Gigafactory for Tesla in the U.S. state of Nevada that churns out 35 GWh of batteries annually…The engine behind CATL's rapid growth has been China's "new energy vehicle" policy, which takes effect next year. This requires a minimum share of domestically built and imported cars in China to be electric vehicles, plug-in hybrids or other unconventionally powered cars…The rules are complicated, but the overall ratio for new energy vehicles has been set at 10% for 2019 and 12% for 2020. | | | | | Congo | | | | Bloomberg - March 23, 2018 Swiss-based IndustriALL calls on carmakers to pressure miner Glencore’s mines are vital source of cobalt for electric cars to their vast reserves of cobalt. The relatively rare element is a key component in the batteries needed to power electric cars and combined While the commodity giant refutes the criticism, the spat reflects the growing scrutiny facing mining companies supplying consumer-facing manufacturers, who are increasingly keen to show the public that their materials have been sourced responsibly…Glencore’s Katanga Mining and Mutanda operations, two of the biggest copper mines in the country, have been thrust into the global spotlight in the last year due to their vast reserves of cobalt. The relatively rare element is a key component in the batteries needed to power electric cars and combined the mines will produce as much as 58,000 metric tons next year, or about 40 percent of global supplies…Strike Threat…Four of IndustriALL’s affiliated unions are represented at Katanga and Mutanda. One of those unions, TUMEC, which represents about 375 workers, is threatening to strike and seeking support from the other groups, IndustriALL Director of Mining Glen Mpufane said…Members of TUMEC are asking for increased food rations, improved medical care, higher salaries and more support with funeral costs for family members, Pierre Tshinguz, a spokesperson for the union, said in an emailed response to questions. | | Reuters US News - March 23, 2018 * New mining code signed into law earlier this month * Fiercely opposed by industry * Miners proposed paying more to produce if exemptions maintained * Mines minister rejects the proposal (Adds details and context) By Amedee Mwarabu KINSHASA, March 23 (Reuters) - Democratic Republic of Congo’s mines minister rejected a proposal by mining companies on Friday to soften some provisions in a new mining code in exchange for higher royalties. Democratic Republic of Congo’s mines minister rejected a proposal by mining companies on Friday to soften some provisions in a new mining code in exchange for higher royalties…Mining companies had said earlier on Friday that they were willing to pay the government more to produce cobalt, gold, copper and other minerals if the government agreed to respect 10-year exemptions to changes to fiscal and customs regimes for existing projects, and cancel certain taxes…The miners had warned that the new code would scare off investment and violate existing agreements…Congolese officials have stuck to a hard line on the code, though, insisting that compromises reached in the new talks cannot contradict provisions in the code. | | | | |