As the electrification drive continues globally in the search for lower fossil fuel emissions, the producers and refiners of the metals needed for this "revolution" are finding themselves at the intersection of the world's supply chains and geopolitics.
The FT takes on the subject in this latest piece.
The new commodity superpowers
"We're not satisfied. None of these contracts create value for us," says Guy Robert Lukama, head of the DRC's state-owned mining company Gécamines. He would like to see more jobs, revenue and higher-value mineral activities captured by the DRC.
Lukama also advocates government intervention to keep cobalt prices high: "Excess of supply needs to be organised properly. Some export quotas will be useful," he says.
