Quote:
Originally Posted by Street Pharmacist
Currently a lot of the cobalt we get is used in oil refining, making of super alloys, etc. Most cobalt currently is used in consumer electronics too. Only a small fraction is mined by hand in the Congo and it is no longer sourced from these "artisinal mines" (though I'm sure it still goes on to some degree and finds it's way into the supply). Most battery manufacturers are starting to use low or zero cobalt materials for their batteries anyways.
As for mining the rest of the needed materials, there's bound to be some environmental impact, and that should be front of mind. Don't forget though, that the existential current problem is GHG emissions and we need to find ways to eliminate those.
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Where does the rest of the cobalt come from? That is interesting. I literally just read a banking analysis like 2 months ago that said a huge portion of cobalt supply (I recall it being something insane like 70-80%) comes from West Africa. I’m not sure there’s a less stable region on Earth.