Energy storage battery factory in the Democratic Republic of Congo

London and Kinshasa, November 24, 2021 – The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) can leverage its abundant cobalt resources and hydroelectric power to become a low-cost and low-emissions producer of lithium-ion battery cathode precursor materials.

In so doing, the country and the rest of Africa can extend their access from the USD271 billion battery precursor segment to the more lucrative USD1.4 trillion combined battery cell production and cell assembly segments of the battery minerals global value chain.

This is due to the DRC's proximity to cathode raw materials and heavy reliance on hydroelectric power plants.

This is three times cheaper than what a similar plant in the U.S. would cost. A similar plant in China and Poland would cost an estimated $112 million and $65 million, respectively. Precursor material produced at plants in the DRC could be cost competitive with material produced in China and Poland but with a lower environmental footprint.

“The DRC produces about 70 per cent of global cobalt but captures just 3 percent of the battery and electric vehicle value chain.

Africa has a wealth of critical battery raw materials and is in a position to use these to attract more value-add in downstream processing and manufacturing.”