Category: Supply Chains
China-Angola Meeting As Luanda Navigates Great Power Competition
Angola’s Foreign Minister Téte António met with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Beijing on Wednesday. He also signed a bilateral investment protection measure with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao. China has sometimes struggled to get such formal investment protection guarantees from ...
Biden Issues New Rules That Aim to Cut China Out of the U.S.’ EV Battery Supply Chain
U.S. consumers will no longer benefit from a $7,500 tax credit when they buy an electric vehicle that contains battery metals that were produced in China, according to new rules released by the Biden administration on Friday. The new regulations are ...
Japan Begins to Feel Pain of China’s Graphite Export Restrictions
China’s recent decision to restrict graphite exports is hitting importers hard, not least in Japan. On December 1, Chinese exporters will need special permits that meet national security concerns before they export the key mineral used in batteries that power electric ...
A Chinese Perspective on the Proposed U.S.-Backed Lobito Corridor in Angola
Angolan President João Lourenço is scheduled to meet with his U.S. counterpart, Joe Biden, at the White House on Thursday, where the two are expected to discuss moving forward with the development of the Lobito Corridor. The U.S. and the European ...
Angolan President to Visit Washington This Week For Lobito Corridor Talks
Angola’s President João Lourenço will meet with U.S. President Joe Biden on Thursday during an official visit to Washington. According to a White House statement, they will focus on the next steps in a joint logistics corridor linking the Angolan port ...
Thailand Promotes Land Bridge Project at APEC
Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin is pitching a $28 billion project aimed at bypassing the Straits of Malacca at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit this week. He also promoted the project at China’s Belt and Road Forum in October. Thavisin told potential ...
Of Choke Points, Copper Mines and China
By Chris Alden and Alvaro Mendez The Panama Canal has run nearly dry. Or to be more exact, the artificial lake that serves as a staging site for ships coming into the canal from the Pacific Ocean is so depleted after ...
Truckers Strike Paralyzes Chinese Copper/Cobalt Shipments From the DR Congo
Truckers in the DR Congo have brought the all-important copper and cobalt trade to a standstill over their refusal to drive unless logistics firms pay an additional $700 risk allowance fee. The strike that began late last month has now ...
Africa’s First Non-Chinese Lithium Operation Gearing Up in Ghana
Ghana is becoming a test case in the United States’ drive to find critical mineral supplies that sideline Chinese mining and refining operations. Australia’s Atlantic Lithium is building the Ewoyaa mine in Ghana. Half of the mine’s output will go to a ...
China Dismisses U.S. Trade Rep’s Moves to Build Alternate Critical Mineral Supply Chains
The Communist Party of China (CPC) said any efforts by the U.S. and its partners to reduce their dependence on Chinese critical resources used to manufacture electric vehicle batteries is "futile and will backfire." The CPC's typically acerbic comments came ...
China Takes Advantage of Cobalt’s Low Price to Boost Strategic Reserve
The Chinese government plans to fortify its stockpile of cobalt, a critical resource used to manufacture electric vehicle batteries. Insiders tell Reuters that the Strategic Reserves Administration plans to purchase 3,100 metric tons of the blue metal in a move likely timed ...
China’s Dominance of the EV Battery Metal Supply Chain
Chilean President Gabriel Boric oversaw the signing of a $233 million lithium deal on Tuesday with Chinese mining giant Tsingshan Holding Group, the latest investment that solidifies China's dominance of the fiercely contested EV battery metal supply chain.