Electric Vehicle Growth Creates East-Asian Battery Mineral Boom - Seite 2

This momentum is causing huge growth in the market for the metals used in EV batteries. CRU Mobility and Energy Futures has predicted that the EV market will need around 1.3 million tons of nickel each year by 2030, compared with 600,000 tons in 2018. Cobalt is facing a similar rise in demand, with experts predicting a 332% increase in global supply from its 2017 levels, to 314,000 tons per annum.

Changing Brands for a Changing Market

This changing market is driving changes in the companies working in the industry. This is reflected in the changing strategies and branding of mining companies such as Bolt Metals Corp. (CSE:BOLT) (OTCQB:PCRCF) (XFRA:NXFE), which is going through a significant rebranding that included a name change from Pacific Rim Cobalt Corp.

To outsiders, name changes like this can look like little more than window dressing. But for observant investors, and for those on the inside of these changes, they often represent significant shifts in focus. While Bolt Metals isn't dividing or merging with another company, its name change reflects a steady shift in line with global markets.

"Rebranding the company is an important step in our emergence as a resource developer in Asia's expanding electric vehicle supply chain," said Bolt Metals CEO Ranjeet Sundher. "The company remains focused on acquiring and developing production-grade, battery-metal projects within the Asia Pacific region, while employing a vertically integrated 'mineral‐to‐market' strategy to leverage these assets to their fullest."

Bolt Metals has been moving away from its initial position as a cobalt producer and into a broader position as a battery-cathode material supplier. BOLT's Cyclops mining project in northern Indonesia reflects this, providing a rich source of cobalt and nickel.

But it's the mine's location, as much as its resources, that is creates potential for the Cyclops project, a new direction for Bolts Metals and a reflection of bigger changes in the EV market.

Indonesia: The New Electric Vehicle Hub?

Indonesia is richly supplied with the mineral resources that the EV industry needs. This includes 25% of the world's nickel reserves as well as other metals such as cobalt. These are crucial metals in the production of EV batteries and, therefore, in the entire supply chain for these vehicles.