Cobalt Demand Forecast Holds Steady Fueled by Batteries and Electronic Products Advancements

PALM BEACH, Florida, April 25, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

MarketNewsUpdates.com News Commentary 

Cobalt continues to be one of the more prominent precious metals due to the increased global demand for the element. The once little-known element cobalt is not only facing a growing demand but is rapidly rising in price, and some warn shortages could hit the metal in the future. Demand is mounting at a significant rate because of technological advancements that require cobalt for energy powering and efficiency. According to Darton Commodities, demand for cobalt is projected to rise 40% throughout 2018 behind the increasing number of electric vehicles in production. As companies like Tesla continue to produce mid-level vehicles like its Model 3, demand in countries like the United States is only expected to rise. With all of this in mind, leaders in the cobalt market are aiming to stay ahead of the competition through advanced drilling methods to enhance their mining efforts. Active minig stocks in the markets include: Pacific Rim Cobalt Corp. (CSE: BOLT) (OTC: PCRCF), Rio Tinto plc (NYSE:RIO), Katanga Mining Limited (TSX:KAT) (OTC:KATFF), Katanga Mining Limited (TSX:KAT) (OTC:KATFF), Fortune Minerals Limited (TSX:FT) (OTC:FTMDF).

Pacific Rim Cobalt Corp. (CSE: BOLT.CN) (OTCQB: PCRCF) BREAKING NEWS: Pacific Rim Cobalt, a resource company with assets located proximal to the world's largest cobalt market, today announced the mobilization of two drill rigs to commence a detailed exploration program at its 5,000 hectare TNM project, Papua Province, Indonesia.

As previously announced, all required exploration and environmental permits have been secured, which allow the Company to immediately commence an exploration program including mapping, surface sampling, and drilling at the TNM project. Additionally, over the last 90 days, Company representatives have conducted extensive community consultation with local stakeholders as well as regional government officials, resulting in overwhelming support for the Company's plan to advance the project.

Drilling will consist of shallow holes averaging 35 meters vertical depth, which based on historical information is sufficient to intersect both the upper, cobalt enriched limonite zone as well as the lower saprolite zone. Historical operators drilled to average depths of 7 meters and reported not to have intersected the full laterite profile with elevated cobalt and nickel occurring at the bottom of the holes. The TNM project was extensively explored by previous operators with a focus on nickel mineralization during which time they completed 856 drill holes and 26 test pits. Pacific Rim Cobalt's efforts will focus both on the five historically identified and drill-tested prospects as well as four previously un-drilled prospects.

The exploration program will include additional surface mapping, hand auger drilling and sampling of the cobalt and nickel mineralized zones. Mapping will include detailed drone-operated topographic and photographic surveys as control for current and future exploration activities. Onsite facilities are being constructed which will house a general field office and laboratory for initial study and preparation of drill core samples prior to transit for independent assay in Jakarta.

A Historical Estimate, which dates from before the requirement for uniform regulatory compliance and therefore fails to meet the current standards of National Instrument 43-101, is being referenced as a guide for Pacific Rim Cobalt's 2018 work program. This early data employed measurements still in use today and indicates mineralization from surface with an estimated potential of 37 million tonnes of 0.11% cobalt and 1.31% nickel at a 0.8% nickel cut-off grade. The Company intends to validate the resource, and where possible, expand upon the Historical Estimate, as only 5 of the 9 known cobalt/nickel occurrences were the subject of the historic studies. For clarity, and to provide reference to the transparency and integrity of the research in question, please see the attached footnote regarding the Historical Estimate. The Company affirms this data in no way implies an estimated resource valuation but is offered as a basis for its current exploratory efforts and approach..Read this and more news for Pacific Rim Cobalt at: http://www.marketnewsupdates.com/news/bolt.html

Additional industry related developments from around the markets:

Rio Tinto plc (NYSE:RIO), through research by Boston's Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), has detailed the metals that are expected to be the most impacted by new technology. According to a graph included in a Rio presentation, tin is predicted by MIT to be the metal that will be most affected by technology, followed by lithium, cobalt, silver, nickel and gold. The technologies that are expected to impact these metals include autonomous and electric vehicles, advanced robotics, renewable energy, and advanced computing and IT. Read more at: https://www.australianmining.com.au/news/metals-will-impacted-technology/

Katanga Mining Limited (TSX:KAT.TO) (OTC:KATFF) recently announced that its joint venture partner, the Democratic Republic of Congo ("DRC") state-owned La Générale des Carrières et des Mines ("Gécamines"), in the Company's 75% DRC operating subsidiary Kamoto Copper Company ("KCC"), has commenced legal proceedings in DRC to dissolve KCC following KCC's failure to address its previously disclosed capital deficiency or, alternatively, if the Court provides KCC with a period of time within which to regularize the situation, to request the appointment of an expert to assess and report to the Court on KCC's financial position and the recapitalization plan. A court hearing is scheduled to be held in the DRC on May 8 th, 2018. The court may grant KCC a maximum period of six (6) months to regularize the situation. The Company believes that it has several options to remedy KCC's capital deficiency and avoid KCC's dissolution.

International Cobalt Corp. (CSE:CO.CN) (OTC:COBAF) recently announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, American Cobalt Corp. ("American Cobalt") has entered into two option agreements (the "Option Agreements") with Supreme Metals Corp. to acquire up to an 80% interest in two cobalt projects which are comprised of the Foster Marshall Project and the Mount Thom Project (collectively known as the "FM Projects"). Pursuant to the Option Agreements, American Cobalt will have the option to earn an initial sixty percent (60%) interest in any of the FM Projects by making an initial payment of $87,500 and by funding exploration to reach an NI 43-101 compliant resource estimate within sixty (60) months of signing of the Option Agreements. American Cobalt will have the right to earn a further twenty percent (20%) interest and any of the FM Projects by completing a Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) within twenty-four (24) months of completing the initial resource estimate. Each of the FM Projects is subject to a 1.5% NSR in favor of a third party.

Fortune Minerals Limited (TSX:FT.TO) (OTCQX:FTMDF) recently announced an update of the financing for its 100% owned NICO Cobalt-Gold-Bismuth-Copper Project in Canada ("NICO Project"). The NICO Project is one of few new cobalt assets globally with the potential to be in production by the early 2020's and respond to the accelerating demand from transformative automotive electrification, portable electronic devices and stationary storage. Fortune has engaged Hatch Ltd. ("Hatch"), P&E Mining Consultants Inc. ("P&E") and Micon International Limited ("Micon") to update the National Instrument 43-101 technical report on the NICO Project Feasibility Study prepared in 2014 based on new design developments and improvements, current capital and operating costs, commodity prices and currency exchange rates, and the economies of scale of an approximate 30% increase in the mill throughput rate. As this study nears completion, Fortune has been advancing discussions with a number of parties to participate in a complete project finance solution to fund construction of the NICO Project.

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