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Minerals Vs Commodities","niche-minerals-vs-commodities","article/niche-minerals-vs-commodities",{"_uid":557,"date":558,"tags":559,"editor":560,"content":570,"excerpt":693,"featured":50,"reporter":694,"_editable":698,"component":699,"seo_title":553,"categories":700,"visibility":707,"author_company":49,"featured_image":708,"seo_description":693,"author_full_name":49,"author_job_title":49,"formattedDate":713,"formattedArticleDate":714},"247f3137-c79d-4455-b368-4bfc3e54123c","2016-05-03 00:00",[],[561],{"slug":562,"name":563,"content":564},"didi-bostock","Didi Bostock",{"job_title":565,"image":566,"bio":568,"linkedin":569},"Editor - Energy Transition & Economics",{"filename":567},"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/512x512/2c5ca5c1a3/didi-bostock.jpeg","Didi is the Energy Transition & Economics Editor at Benchmark, covering a broad range of markets across the energy transition. His remit spans from downstream sectors such as BESS and EVs, through to midstream such as new technologies and battery production, to upstream critical minerals mining. He also leads on financial analysis across these supply chains, alongside in-depth policy analysis.\n","https://www.linkedin.com/in/didi-bostock-656342198/",{"type":571,"content":572},"doc",[573,582,587,592,599,604,609,614,619,624,629,634,641,646,651,656,663,668,673,678,683,688],{"type":574,"attrs":575,"content":576},"paragraph",{"textAlign":49},[577,580],{"text":578,"type":579},"With the slump in commodity markets forcing greater diversity among mining investors, critical minerals, particularly those used in new hi-tech application, present some of the few areas of optimism. However, with many being burnt in the past through ventures into these niche spaces, it’s important to appreciate how these materials differ fundamentally from","text",{"text":581,"type":579},"traditional commodities",{"type":574,"attrs":583,"content":584},{"textAlign":49},[585],{"text":586,"type":579},"As commodity markets slump to new lows, a wave of interest has engulfed niche minerals with emerging hi-tech applications.",{"type":574,"attrs":588,"content":589},{"textAlign":49},[590],{"text":591,"type":579},"Here, Benchmark Mineral Intelligence outlines five ways these raw materials differ from traditional commodities and explains why these differences can hold the key to success or failure in the sector.",{"type":593,"attrs":594,"content":596},"heading",{"level":595,"textAlign":49},3,[597],{"text":598,"type":579},"A question of quality",{"type":574,"attrs":600,"content":601},{"textAlign":49},[602],{"text":603,"type":579},"Fundamental differences between niche minerals and traditional commodities are evident throughout their respective supply chains, beginning with the way in which they are mined.",{"type":574,"attrs":605,"content":606},{"textAlign":49},[607],{"text":608,"type":579},"Where traditional commodities such as iron ore, copper and petroleum have long established supply chains, rooted in decades of exploration that has identified and developed significant resources across the world, niche minerals have been neglected for a generation.",{"type":574,"attrs":610,"content":611},{"textAlign":49},[612],{"text":613,"type":579},"Many of these sectors have not seen a major new market entrant for over a decade and while the excitement surrounding emerging end markets has caused a surge in exploration since 2009, weak capital markets have stunted the progress of even the most unique of resources.",{"type":574,"attrs":615,"content":616},{"textAlign":49},[617],{"text":618,"type":579},"At the heart of this dearth in development lies the inability of investors to sever their ties to traditional mining project analysis.",{"type":574,"attrs":620,"content":621},{"textAlign":49},[622],{"text":623,"type":579},"Bigger is not necessarily better when it comes to niche minerals.",{"type":574,"attrs":625,"content":626},{"textAlign":49},[627],{"text":628,"type":579},"While the majority of commodity projects depend upon extraction and distribution on a vast scale, the precise properties of a resource are as critical to a niche mineral project as its size or proximity to market.",{"type":574,"attrs":630,"content":631},{"textAlign":49},[632],{"text":633,"type":579},"As a result, existing critical mineral mines are generally smaller scale projects, supplying an established set of customers with defined requirements. This is in contrast to the majority of major commodity mines.",{"type":574,"attrs":635,"content":636},{"textAlign":49},[637,639],{"text":638,"type":579},"For example, the world’s largest iron ore project, the Vale-owned Carajas mine in Brazil, produced 120m tonnes in 2014. In comparison, the world’s largest graphite mine has a capacity of 50,000 tpa, no lithium projects exceed 40,000 tpa LCE production and the vast majority of the 90,000 tonnes of cobalt produced every year comes as a by-product of copper and nickel",{"text":640,"type":579},"\nplays.",{"type":574,"attrs":642,"content":643},{"textAlign":49},[644],{"text":645,"type":579},"With emerging hi-tech end markets threatening to disrupt the existing supply structure in many of these industries, a diversification of resources will be required.",{"type":574,"attrs":647,"content":648},{"textAlign":49},[649],{"text":650,"type":579},"Whether this could be on the scale of traditional commodities remains to be seen, but existing reserves would suggest otherwise.",{"type":593,"attrs":652,"content":653},{"level":595,"textAlign":49},[654],{"text":655,"type":579},"Adding value",{"type":574,"attrs":657,"content":658},{"textAlign":49},[659,661],{"text":660,"type":579},"The starkest contrast between niche minerals and commodities lies in where",{"text":662,"type":579},"\nvalue is added in their respective supply chains.",{"type":574,"attrs":664,"content":665},{"textAlign":49},[666],{"text":667,"type":579},"Where commodity production is generally a volume game, niche minerals are refined, specialist products which require specific processing to ensure their efficient application.",{"type":574,"attrs":669,"content":670},{"textAlign":49},[671],{"text":672,"type":579},"This is a difference which is only becoming more apparent with the use of these previously industrial minerals in emerging hi-tech sectors.",{"type":574,"attrs":674,"content":675},{"textAlign":49},[676],{"text":677,"type":579},"Now, more than ever before, the secret behind niche mineral production resides in the hands of the processors. Supply security no longer refers to the ability of a producer to mine and deliver a product, but their ability to provide a consistent supply of tailored material which will maximise efficiency.",{"type":574,"attrs":679,"content":680},{"textAlign":49},[681],{"text":682,"type":579},"Despite being a minor input cost into applications like lithium-ion batteries, these materials are proving critical in improving performance, and in turn overcoming some of the major barriers to adoption.",{"type":574,"attrs":684,"content":685},{"textAlign":49},[686],{"text":687,"type":579},"Few have the experience in these markets to recognise this in itself, not to mention to act upon it.",{"type":574,"attrs":689,"content":690},{"textAlign":49},[691],{"text":692,"type":579},"The emergence of new markets with more refined needs is exposing not only a lack of resources, but also a lack of expertise to provide materials in line with end-user requirements, both old and new.","With the slump in commodity markets forcing greater diversity among mining investors, critical minerals, particularly those used in new hi-tech application, present some of the few areas of optimism. However, with many being burnt in the past through ventures into these niche spaces, it’s important to appreciate how these materials differ fundamentally from traditional commodities",[695],{"slug":562,"name":563,"content":696},{"job_title":565,"image":697,"bio":568,"linkedin":569},{"filename":567},"\u003C!--#storyblok#{\"name\": \"article\", \"space\": \"\", \"uid\": \"247f3137-c79d-4455-b368-4bfc3e54123c\", \"id\": \"\"}-->","article",[701,704],{"slug":702,"name":703},"batteries","Batteries",{"slug":705,"name":706},"critical-minerals","Critical Minerals","private",{"id":49,"alt":709,"name":709,"focus":709,"title":709,"source":709,"filename":710,"copyright":709,"fieldtype":711,"meta_data":712,"is_external_url":51},"","https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/a88a64aa64/bm-commodities-back.jpg","asset",{"alt":709,"title":709,"source":709,"copyright":709},"May 03, 2016","3rd May 2016",[],[],1792773949490]