Chairman of the International Cobalt Association Says Cobalt Prices Will Remain High amid Steadily Growing Demand, But Expects Prices to Fall in the Medium Term due to Changing Supply-Demand Dynamics

SHANGHAI, Jul 15 (SMM) - Cobalt supply from mines rose in 2021, especially driven by supply from the Democratic Republic of Congo. Therefore, supply may be the biggest challenge to the sustainable development of the cobalt industry, and the supply in Congo still has room for growth.

Demand for cobalt will continue to grow and is expected to exceed 300,000 mt by 2026. The price of cobalt had been on the rise from 2021 to 2022, but has fallen recently, and is expected to remain high in the future. Its prices will be mainly supported by rising demand and limited supply.

In the medium term, as supply grows, changes in supply-demand dynamics could cause its prices to fall.

Taken together, the outlook for cobalt remains strong. Considering that most of the demand for cobalt comes from the electric vehicle industry, cobalt still plays an important role in the battery value chain. In the medium and long term, more capital will be invested in the mining of cobalt. Supply chain restrictions will still exist for cobalt. As raw materials are shipped out of Africa and go to China, the cobalt price will remain high. The pace of global investment will accelerate to meet the demand gap.