Bolt Metals Signs Cooperation Agreement with Chinese Metals Supplier, Hunan Jinxin New Material Co., Ltd. - Seite 2

James Foster, Bolt Metals’ China head, mentioned “Hunan Jinxin represent the perfect partner to take Bolt Metals through to the next stage of development and we are happy to have them as partners for the long term”.

Founded in 2004, Hunan Jinxin is primarily engaged in the acquisition, production, processing and marketing of tungsten and cobalt. It is located in Hunan and benefits from outstanding road and rail links to metals companies across Hunan and greater China. Hunan Jinxin makes a range of products including cobalt products for use in the EV batteries. Other products developed by Hunan Jinxin include cobalt carbonate, tungsten oxide, and sodium tungstate.

The Company also has an existing non-binding preliminary offtake agreement with Beijing Easpring Material Technology Co., Ltd. (“Easpring”) covering nickel sulphate and cobalt sulphate sourced from the Company’s Cyclops project. The agreement similarly includes a strategic investment option. Easpring is recognized as the leader in China in its industry and was one of the first suppliers to export lithium cathode material. Presently, Easpring supplies 5 of the world’s six larger lithium-ion battery manufacturers and is one of the only Chinese suppliers that simultaneously sells high-quality cathode materials in China and internationally, including Japan and Korea’s high-end lithium-ion battery markets.

The Market

The growth in global EV sales continues to expand rapidly. Deloitte’s latest research projects global EV sales at 4 million units in 2020 and 21 million by 2030. The past five years have seen an annual 20% reduction in the cost of EV battery packs which Bloomberg now forecasts to become cheaper than equivalent combustion engine models by as soon as 2022.

According to CRU Mobility and Energy Futures, by 2030 the EV market will require an estimated 1.3 million tons per annum of nickel compared to just 600,000 tons in 2018. For cobalt, the required total is forecast to be 314,000 tons per annum of, which equates to 332% of the metal’s entire global supply in 2017.

The Company has always maintained that Indonesia is perfectly placed to take advantage of the burgeoning EV sector and 2019 has seen the continuation of a number of exciting trends and developments which lay the foundations for the continued future growth in every vertical of the EV supply chain. These developments also strengthen Indonesia’s ability to capitalize on its abundant resources, which includes 25% of global nickel reserves.