VINACHEM

The cobalt market continued to rally in 2015, with the help of Tesla Motors plans to build a lithium-ion battery gigafactory to boost sentiment.

Once it’s operating, the gigafactory will require a steady, stable supply of graphite, lithium and cobalt — and more importantly it will require a lot of those materials. Unsurprisingly, prospective cobalt producers have seen share price boosts since the gigafactory was announced, and Tesla’s isn’t the only battery megafactory set to come online either.

With that context, here is a look at the top 10 cobalt producing countries for 2015, as identified by the US Geological Survey (USGS). Cobalt is usually produced as a by-product of copper or nickel, so countries that produce high quantities of those metals generally put out a lot of cobalt as well.

1. Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)

Mine production: 63,000 metric tons

The DRC is the world’s largest producer of cobalt, accounting for roughly 60 percent of global production. The country has been the top producer of the metal for some time. The DRC’s output in 2015 matched the output for 2014 at 63,000 metric tons.

The Congo will allegedly receive increasing amounts of foreign investment in the coming years, mostly from China, as a result of low production costs and high-quality minerals, according to Mining Weekly.

2. China

Mine production: 7,200 metric tons
China saw no change in its cobalt production from 2014 to 2015. For the first six months of 2015, availability of refined cobalt was 11 percent higher than the same period of 2014, with increased production in China.

That being said, China Molybdenum is poised to become the world’s biggest cobalt producer with its acquisition of Freeport McMoRan‘s interest in its TF Holdings Limited.

3. Canada

Mine production: 6,300 metric tons

Canada’s 2015 cobalt production dropped slightly to 6,300 from 2014, when the country produced 6,570 metric tons. According to MBendi Information Services, Canada relies on its large nickel and copper miners to produce copper as a byproduct of their normal operations. Some of these major nickel and copper deposits are Kidds Creek, Sudbury and Raglan. However, the country is likely to expand production and identify new sites.

4. Russia

Mine production: 6,300 metric tons

Russia bumped Australia out of the number four spot to become the world’s fourth largest cobalt producer in 2015. Russia’s production remained the same from 2014 to 2015 at 6,300 metric tons. However, last year the global economy faced worry that cobalt, among other items would be restricted due to sanctions established as a result of the Crimea conflict, as noted by Daily Resource Hunter.

Real Clear World noted that in 2014, Russia produced 8 percent of the world’s cobalt. As the metal is derived from copper and nickel mines, this added to global fears about the supply of copper, and added to the factors playing a role in its price increase.

5. Australia

Mine production: 6,500 metric tons

Australia saw a slight increase in its cobalt production from 2014 to 2015, from 5,980 metric tons to 6,000 in 2015. Similar to other countries on this list, the country’s cobalt production is left to nickel and copper mines, as the cobalt is generated as a byproduct. According to MBendi Information Services, the country’s nickel mines are located in the western region of the country, mostly around the Kalgoorlie – Leonara regions.

6. Philippines

Mine production: 4,600 metric tons

The Philippines had an excellent year for cobalt production, jumping ahead of Cuba. Last year, the Philippines produced 4,6000 metric tons of cobalt, the same amount as its 2014 production. This was largely due to the country stepping in to replace the gap left by Indonesia’s ore-export cuts in 2014, according to Bloomberg.

“Indonesia’s ban affected us positively,” said Michael Defensor, chairman of Pax Libera Mining Inc. “We will maximize this window and ship as much as we can.”

Ore exports to China from the Philippines rose 24 percent in the first 10 months of 2014. However, while some industry leaders expect this to only be a temporary situation, Defensor told Bloomberg he plans to continue to deliver as efficiently as possible so that if the ban is lifted the country will still be a global contender.

7. Cuba

Mine production: 4,200 metric tons

Cuban production of cobalt increased from 3,700 in 2014 to 4,200 in 2015. With that in mind, that number will increase in years to come, according to InvestorIntel. This is because of sanctions being removed and relations with the US, which has little cobalt production of its own, are easing.

Specifically, two of Cuba’s largest ore-producing plants were formerly owned by the US. It is anticipated that these mines will expand production and become a major source of imports for the US as relations improve.

8. Zambia

Mine production: 5,500 metric tons

Like a number of other countries, Zambia’s cobalt production for 2015 remained the same as 2014’s, sitting at 5,500 MT for two years straight.

According to Mineweb, Murray and Roberts Cementation, which is an integrated copper and cobalt producer, completed the sinking of its Synclinorium Shaft project for Mopani Copper Mines. Mopani is is the largest copper mine in Zambia, and further, it’s one of the biggest in the world. With this new shaft in place, production and expansion are expected to grow significantly.

9. South Africa

Mine production: 2,800 metric tons

South Africa’s cobalt production dropped in 2015 from 3,000 to 2,800. However, according to an article from May 2014 in Mining Weekly, the country could produce significantly more cobalt if it altered its mining methods. Currently, the country relies on hard-rock, narrow reef mines, but should turn to blast mining.

“If you can selectively separate the reef part of the underground ore reserve and throw the waste rock aside, the cobalt concentration once that ore reaches the surface is very much higher and becomes easier to recover,” said Dr. RE Robinson, research commentator.

Cobalt is largely sourced as a byproduct of the Bushveld platinum mines in South Africa.

10. Brazil

Mine production: 2,600 metric tons

Rounding out the top ten is Brazil, who stayed relatively the same at 2,600 metric tons in both 2014 and 2015. However, while South Africa sticks to less efficient methods of production, Vale (NYSE:VALE) is largely investing in Brazil, currently occupying 14 Brazilian states and looking to expand.