As demand for lithium-ion batteries surges, the price of the once little-known element cobalt is rising rapidly. Now many companies are beginning to worry about their supply security. However, the supply of cobalt depends largely on changes in the copper and nickel markets.

　　The price of the once little-known cobalt element is rising rapidly, and some people are even worried that there will be a shortage of cobalt mineral resources in the future. The surge in demand for lithium-ion batteries used in electronic products and electric vehicles is the main reason for the rise in the price of cobalt element. At the same time, companies are also beginning to There are concerns about the security of its supply.

　　According to data from the United States Geological Survey, the current price of metallic cobalt has more than doubled compared with 2017. Some companies have responded to the sharp increase in cobalt prices and are looking for ways to reduce supply chain costs. It is reported that Apple has begun trying to purchase metallic cobalt directly from cobalt miners, and car manufacturers such as BMW and Volkswagen have also taken similar measures.

　　According to a report from the UK-based Darden Commodities Exchange, demand for cobalt in the automotive battery field is expected to increase by more than 40% in 2018. The development of electric vehicles and hybrid vehicles in the Chinese and European markets has become an important demand factor, and Tesla The gradual increase in Model 3 production will also become the main driving force for the growth of demand for cobalt in the U.S. market.

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　　Although battery technology engineers can replace certain elements by changing the design or using other elements, cobalt alone is difficult to replace. Although there are some elements that can replace cobalt, they will cause a loss of functionality during use.

　　Marc Grynberg, CEO of Umicore Materials, said in an interview: "There is no element that can increase energy density better than nickel, and there is no element better than cobalt that stabilizes all energy. So maybe you have heard There's some technology news about replacing cobalt, but that's not going to happen in the next 20 to 30 years because the existing skills can't do it yet."

　　One potential problem now is that most of the world's cobalt mines come as a by-product of mining for other metals. In 2017, approximately 69% of the world's cobalt ore was obtained from copper mining, and 29% was a by-product of nickel ore. Therefore, the supply of cobalt depends largely on changes in the copper and nickel markets.

　　Now mining companies like ERG and Glencore are planning to re-evaluate their cobalt mining operations, hoping to balance market supply and demand in the short term, but if the electric vehicle market continues to develop at a high speed, this short-term balance cannot remain stable.

　　Dutton pointed out in the report: "Although costs are expected to decline as cobalt ore production increases by 2022, the production costs of electric vehicles are expected to remain relatively close to the costs of traditional internal combustion vehicles in the short term."

　　Although we often see the emergence of some new battery technologies, it is still too far away to achieve true large-scale commercial use. In other words, the world of lithium batteries will still be in the future. Let’s follow the power management editor to learn about the relevant content.

　　In order to protect the environment, more and more countries and regions are still pushing for new energy vehicles, so this has also forced the demand for lithium batteries. To make lithium batteries, cobalt is indispensable. Although scientists can change the design or use other elements to replace certain elements, the only element cobalt is difficult to replace, which is also the key to its price doubling every year.

　　One potential problem now is that most of the world's cobalt mines come as a by-product of mining for other metals. In 2017, approximately 69% of the world's cobalt ore was obtained from copper mining, and 29% was a by-product of nickel ore. Therefore, the supply of cobalt depends largely on changes in the copper and nickel markets.

　　Regarding the future of lithium batteries, Marc Grynberg, head of Umicore Materials Company, said: There is no element that can increase energy density better than nickel, and there is no element better than cobalt to stabilize all energy. So it won’t happen in the next twenty or thirty years, and lithium batteries are still king.

　　It has been previously reported that some mobile phone manufacturers have prepared graphene batteries, which are a new generation of batteries to be commercialized. Its biggest advantage is that the battery storage capacity of the same volume is about 45% of that of lithium batteries, but it can It is fully charged in 12 minutes and can maintain a high degree of stability in environments up to 60 degrees Celsius. Looking at it now, we still have to wait.

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