It is cobalt, or green gold, that is vital for the world's battery-dependent future.
Mineral exploration company KoBold Metals said it will begin drilling operations in Greenland to find key materials for use in electric vehicles, with a focus on metals such as nickel, copper, cobalt and platinum.
KoBold has key investors including Breakthrough Energy Ventures, a technology and climate investment fund backed by Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, Bloomberg founder Michael Bloomberg and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.
The price of nickel, used to make stainless steel and electric vehicle batteries, more than doubled in early March 2022 after the Russia-Ukraine war broke out, raised concerns about Western sanctions against Moscow. Russia supplies about 10% of the world's nickel needs. Recent political developments show that Western countries need to find new cobalt mines.
Cobalt has become a key ingredient in the global transition to a greener future. This fact is reflected in the skyrocketing price of cobalt, from $29,000/ton in July 2020 to $82,000/ton in March 2022.
Most lithium-ion batteries depend on cobalt, and everything from iPhones to Teslas needs them. An analytics firm estimates the worldwide market for electric vehicles and consumer electronics will drive cobalt demand at least three times higher by the end of the decade.
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