Commodity profile — Cobalt

The document details the global cobalt market, highlighting the extreme concentration of mine production in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and refining in China. It examines the shift toward battery-enabled end-uses, the role of Chinese investment in global supply, and the social risks associated with artisanal mining in the DRC.

• Global cobalt mine production is heavily concentrated in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), which produced 75.9% of the world's mined output in 2024, an increase of 25% since 2015.
• China dominates the cobalt refining sector, accounting for 80% of global refinery production in 2023 and refining 95% of the world's cobalt chemicals for lithium-ion battery cathodes in 2022.
• Cobalt is primarily produced as a by-product rather than a primary commodity, with 78% coming from copper mining and 22% from nickel mining.
• Over 50% of global cobalt demand is driven by battery applications, specifically for battery electric vehicles (BEVs), plug-in hybrids (PHEVs), and hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), which alone account for 37% of end-use.
• Artisanal cobalt mining is almost exclusively located in the DRC; while its share of DRC production peaked at roughly 50% around 2008, it declined to approximately 10% by 2020.
• Future cobalt supply may be augmented by recycling, with end-of-life recycling rates expected to grow from 10% to 25% in 2025 and 39% by 2050, as well as through deep-sea mining of approximately 120 million mt of resources.

APA

Hamisi, J., Rezola, O. A., Lang, B., Adams, C., Bellois, G., Ramdoo, I., & Gulley, A. (2026). Commodity profile — Cobalt. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2026-05/commodity-profile-cobalt.pdf

Chicago

Hamisi, Jonathan, Ottavia Austin Rezola, Bertram Lang, Catherine Adams, Grégoire Bellois, Isabelle Ramdoo, and Andrew Gulley. Commodity profile — Cobalt. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2026. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2026-05/commodity-profile-cobalt.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Hamisi |first1=Jonathan |last2=Rezola |first2=Ottavia Austin |last3=Lang |first3=Bertram |last4=Adams |first4=Catherine |last5=Bellois |first5=Grégoire |last6=Ramdoo |first6=Isabelle |last7=Gulley |first7=Andrew |title=Commodity profile — Cobalt |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=May 2026 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2026-05/commodity-profile-cobalt.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{hamisi2026commodity, author = {Hamisi, Jonathan and Rezola, Ottavia Austin and Lang, Bertram and Adams, Catherine and Bellois, Grégoire and Ramdoo, Isabelle and Gulley, Andrew}, title = {{Commodity profile — Cobalt}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2026}, month = may, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2026-05/commodity-profile-cobalt.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }