RE: Todays Telegraph9 Mar 2024 08:32
“ Since the 1980s, China has steadily gained a stranglehold over refining of many critical and rare earth minerals. It refines about 70pc of the world’s cobalt, 70pc of nickel and 60pc of battery-grade lithium.
As many Western miners often point out, that gives it more comparative sway than the Opec+ cartel enjoys over oil.
Along with state subsidies and tax breaks from Beijing, this has helped Chinese EV giants including BYD, Geely and SAIC Motor build highly efficient supply chains – and amid cut-throat competition at home, they have been seeking to drive costs ever lower.
Chinese mining companies have also snapped up a plethora of foreign mines abroad, supported with easy credit from state lenders, to lock in raw supplies. “