Cobalt Reserves Distribution at Country Level (USGS - 2018)

Source: mineral reserves data comes from USGS ( US Geological Survey, Mineral Commodity Summaries 2018 [https://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/pubs/mcs/]). Administrative boundaries generalized by UNEP/GRID-Geneva (2019) based on the Global Administrative Unit Layers (GAUL) dataset (G2015_2014), implemented by FAO within the CountrySTAT and Agricultural Market Information System (AMIS) projects (2015).

Demand for green energy technology is predicted to increase dramatically in the years and decades ahead. Corresponding mineral resources needed to build, transport and install these technology will also be in larger demand. Cobalt is among such minerals to be critical to the development and deployment of key green energy technologies - wind, electrical vehicles and energy storage.

Such increasing demand should be an economic boon to those countries that are home to the principal reserves of the minerals. Increase investments should, in a well governed sector, result in increased revenues to the state, improved infrastructure, more jobs, and increase spending on public welfare. Unfortunately, not all countries of the reserves guarantee a well governance. Conflict and fragility risks might even be increased along the whole green energy supply chains.

Reference: IISD (International Institute of Sustainable Development, Green Conflict Minerals [https://www.iisd.org/story/green-conflict-minerals/], 2018)