Spotlight: Major cobalt projects in Chile

US company Chilean Cobalt Corp (C3) and Canada's Capstone Copper are advancing cobalt projects in Chile with the aspiration of supplying the electric vehicle battery manufacturing industry, their largest source of demand.

But the market will remain weak and concentrated, with the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and China being the main players, at least until 2030, according to an IEA report.

C3 recently announced a possible partnership with Switzerland's Glencore to finance and purchase the cobalt and copper produced at La Cobaltera in Atacama region. The agreement will “be completed before the end of the year,” C3 CEO Duncan Blount told BNamericas.

Blount added that the company is in the process of applying for a US$317mn loan from Exim Bank to promote La Cobaltera and finance its feasibility study. The firm aims to draw down the loan in 2026.

In addition, C3 plans to acquire mining concessions around La Cobaltera, which is 40km from Vallenar, and it "analyzes other cobalt opportunities in Chile, including tailings projects," Blount said, adding the company wants to acquire other cobalt exploration sites both in Chile and Africa.

Capstone Copper, for its part, is preparing a feasibility study for the Mantoverde Optimized project that will be presented this quarter and that includes a blue metal line to produce 1,500-2,000t/y.

Production could increase to 8,000t/y once integration with Santo Domingo, located 35km away, is achieved, which promises to create a mining district with "potential to become one of the largest producers of cobalt worldwide," a recent corporate presentation said.

To recover cobalt, the company plans to use ion exchange technology and a leaching process that has been tested at a pilot plant since the beginning of the year. Cobalt production at Mantoverde should start in 2025.

Exploration

The Bandurrias project, in Monte Patria, Coquimbo region, also showed the presence of cobalt, suggesting the metal could be produced as a byproduct of copper and molybdenum extraction, according to a report by the mining ministry and investment promotion agency InvestChile.

Similar prospects include Jericó, which constitutes a low-sulfidation gold deposit with traces of rare earths and cobalt in Maule region, and the Playa project, which contains copper, iron ore and cobalt in Atacama region, the report said.

Market

Global cobalt demand is expected to reach 344,000t in 2030, compared to 215,000t in 2023, mainly due to electromobility battery production.

But the DRC will account for 66% of supply, Indonesia for 10% and Russia for 3%, while China will account for 74% of refining, followed by Finland with 6% and Japan with 4%, according to the IEA.

However, efforts to reduce cobalt content in batteries are underway due to social problems linked to mining in the DRC.

The situation is compounded by low demand for EVs, due to weakening sales in the US and EU, high interest rates and the tariffs these markets imposed on Chinese products, Hannah Frösler, a base metals analyst at South African mining research institute Afriforesight, told a recent seminar.

"While we expect battery demand to increase, the transition would be slower than anticipated," she said.

Cobalt prices are expected to trend downward throughout the year, due to lower EV demand and higher supply from the DRC and Indonesia.

Hedge funds, such as Anchorage Capital Advisors and Squarepoint Capital, are taking advantage of the low prices to buy cobalt, while analysts anticipate a gradual recovery.