The next few years will see worldwide consumption of cobalt rise significantly as nascent demand from the electric vehicle market comes on line. For both electric vehicle and tech manufacturers, cobalt forms an essential ingredient of the ubiquitous lithium-ion battery in cars, mobiles and computers. But there is a catch. While demand is rising, the worldwide supply and future reserves of cobalt are increasingly concentrated into one major market: the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). This market produces 60% of the world’s cobalt supply, but suffers from crumbling infrastructure and significant human rights challenges. These challenges are increasingly putting companies in the cobalt supply chain under scrutiny from campaigners, regulators and the media. It is within this context that companies must now secure their supply chains of cobalt-based, lithium-ion batteries. Simply put, the battery technology which is central to the imminent large-scale commercialization of the electric vehicle industry and the revolution in consumer technology is dependent on Congolese supply to meet demand.
This briefing paper, derived from RCS Global’s own recent research on Congolese cobalt supply chains, aims to:
• Provide insight on the risks associated with DRC production that represents approximately 60% of global cobalt output and half the world’s known reserves;
• Unpack the associated regulatory challenges linked to DRC cobalt;
• Provide a road map for companies seeking to mitigate their risk exposure.
When planning the ReDirection project, we decided to inquire into the largest darknet communities of child sexual abusers and examine their members’ attempts to refrain from sexual violence against children and their support for each oth...Read More
The British Red Cross and UNHCR report, At risk: exploitation and the UK asylum system, finds that people seeking asylum in the UK are at risk of exploitation and have been exploited in the UK. When people are forced to flee, they leave behind m...Read More
In recent years, it has become increasingly apparent that there is a gap in the global understanding of how child sexual exploitation affects boys. While data on the prevalence of all child sexual exploitation is generally lacking, when data does ex...Read More
The progressive responses by some businesses to the Black Lives Matter protests, and the systemic racism they are calling attention to, have been framed as voluntary commitments of socially conscious companies. In fact, all businesses have an ironcl...Read More
2025 © Copyright, RESPECT International. All Rights Reserved. Website Disclaimer | Privacy Policy
