Many modern technologies rely on cobalt. The metal is able to increase the life and energy density of batteries, which means it has become an important material particularly for certain lithium-ion batteries, found in devices such as electric cars, laptops and smartphones. As a result, cobalt demand has surged in recent years and refinery production has increased, becoming more common in countries such as China. Three-quarters of the world’s cobalt mine production takes place in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where there have been cases of forced evictions and human rights abuses as well as environmental destruction.
According to data from the Cobalt Institute's annual report, it is now estimated that more than two-thirds of the cobalt mined on Earth (71 percent in 2023) is used to produce electric batteries. More specifically, 45 percent of global cobalt demand accounts for the production of batteries for electric vehicles and 26 percent by that of portable batteries. According to projections, the demand for cobalt could increase fourfold by 2030, largely due to the increasing adoption of EV. Research is currently being carried out into batteries that do not rely on cobalt.
This chart was originally produced for the French platform, created by Tristan Gaudiaut.
