1. ASM - artisanal to small scale miners. Most prone to exploitation. 45M such miners in DRC
2. Cobalt miners in DRC are paid $1.1 to $2 per kilogram based on cobalt quality and quantity in unregulated mines, Cobalt is sold by middlemen at $7-8 per kilogram which is sold on London metal exchange at $60+.
3. Congo has a rich history of commercial exploitation from the 1900s - Ivory, Rubber, Gold & Silver, Tin Copper, Uranium for explosives, Tungsten for microprocessors, Cobalt for batteries.
4. China is the largest Cobalt refiner and owns the largest Cobalt miner in DRC i.e. vertical integration.
5. Concept of rich companies and countries obscuring the supply chain of exploration is common - occurs in Sugar as well in the past.
6. Trigger points for Cobalt demand - smartphone manufacturing and EV revolution
7. Earnings per day for an ASM is $1 and at max $5 to $7 at a co-operative mine where cobalt quality is of the highest grade
8. DRC has a permit which costs ~$100 per year to transport ore on the road hence the artisanal miners are forced to sell their ores to middlemen who transport. ASMs also don’t have the motorcycle or bicycle to pull the sacks from mine to the depots.
9. Lithium Ion batteries have only 7% Lithium but up to 60% Cobalt due to its importance for the cathode part of the battery
10. Depots are mostly run by Chinese agents who have armed local guards. Local guards often run illegal mining operations and they are anyways paid up to $50 per day.