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The plant, which has been under maintenance for more than three years at the end of February 2019, will reach full capacity by March 2023, producing an average of 1,800 tons per month of copper cathode and 300 tpm of cobalt hydroxide.
The restart of cobalt hydroxide production at Boss Mining will add additional supply to a market where demand, especially in the chemical and consumer electronics sectors, is weak.
Demand in the chemical and consumer electronics sectors remains weak, with market participants holding sufficient supplies and operating in a wait-and-see mode.
Continued availability of supplies from both the DRC and Indonesia is expected through the first half of 2023. The latest supply and demand forecasts also take into account additional cobalt supply through nickel matte operations in Indonesia, an area that could provide 2,000-3,000 tons per year of additional cobalt to the market as a by-product.
A surplus of 5,000 tons of cobalt is estimated for 2022 and this surplus is expected to increase to 15,000 tons in 2023. Cobalt put up a good rebound in the last session, registering +10.25 percent from the previous week’s prices, closing at 49,230 euro/mt.
As for copper, the three-month price on the London Metal Exchange is reported to have risen sharply today Tuesday, December 13, by 2.80 percent to $8,600/mt. In March and April it had exceeded $10,000/ton. Today, however, it is in the process of decisively pushing against the first crucial resistance in the $8,600/ton area, a 200-day moving average that it could potentially break through to the upside, developing decisive ascents toward subsequent targets in the $9,000/ton area first.
The closure of Boss Mining allowed ERG and Gécamines to evaluate different investment paths and conduct further studies on the economics and sustainability of the operation.
Recognizing that mining plays a key role in the social and economic betterment of its host communities, ERG intends to develop and scale Boss Mining’s operations in a sustainable manner to enable positive long-term social, environmental, and economic outcomes.
