CNSR SCI 477 - Module 1: Group 4 by Lydia Ashton

Introduction

lydiaashton1 — 2024-09-29 02:29:11 UTC

The article "Demand for Copper is Surging" from CNBC focuses on the increasing demand for copper, an essential metal for industries such as construction, defense, electric vehicles, and renewable energy. However, existing and in-development copper mines are expected to meet only 80% of global needs by 2030, according to the International Energy Agency. This article highlights several reasons why mining companies are struggling to meet this rising demand:

Finding high-grade copper deposits is difficult, as they are not abundant and typically in risky/geographically challenging regions, according to Chris LaFemina, a global metals and mining analyst.
Inflation and the high costs of developing new mines add further obstacles for mining companies. It costs billions of dollars upfront and takes 10-15 years to build a new mine.
Shaky geopolitical standings make investors hesitant to invest in new mining projects on foreign soil, as uncertainty in regions rich in copper deposits can lead to instability and unpredictable returns. This has caused Mining companies to look towards expanding their operations in The US.

Conclusion

2024-10-04 21:24:51 UTC

In the article "Demand for Copper is Surging," the news source CNBC talked about the importance of copper in our society. The article also talks about how mining plays an essential role in the future development of technology and infrastructure. Everything that we use daily has been either mined or grown. As stated before, the mines that are already in operation will only be able to meet roughly 80% of global needs. Mining has been something that many people have been criticizing for years because of its negative impacts on the environment.

It has become increasingly harder to mine for copper because the large copper deposits are found in remote, hard-to-reach places. This causes companies to spend millions of dollars building and maintaining copper mines and other mines alike. The moral of this story is that mines are essential to keep evolving technology and infrastructure. Copper is the future, so companies need to plan accordingly.

Jackson Slayton

Economic Context

2024-10-04 21:38:38 UTC

The article "Demand for Copper is Surging" from CNBC explains that energy transitions and advancements in modern technology and infrastructure have caused a surge in the global demand for copper. Without copper, modern advancements in construction, defense, electric vehicles, mobile phones, and more, would not be possible. The problem with copper, however, is that supply is limited; copper mines are not easily accessible, and in countries like Chile, where the copper reserves are big enough to give them an absolute advantage, mining is becoming increasingly unreliable for investors. Therefore, this rise in the demand of copper will make it increasingly difficult to maintain consistent levels of copper supply.

Based on the necessity of copper in the production of modern technology and infrastructure, this increased demand will also lead to a significant increase in the equilibrium price for copper. The price elasticity of demand for copper is inelastic, so this increase in price will not necessarily have any affect on the demand; if decarbonization is priority for businesses and corporations, they will still need to purchase copper, regardless of price.

Graph

2024-10-05 17:44:36 UTC

This graph is depicting the supply and demand of copper where it originally was and where it has moved. The demand for copper has increased causing the demand curve to shift to the right. This shift in the demand curve has also caused the equilibrium price to increase as well.

Analysis

2024-10-05 17:58:14 UTC

In the article Copper Shortage Could Derail Global 2050 EV Goals it focuses heavily on the role that copper plays in manufacturing battery technology for electric cars. But at the core it is discussing the changes in demand for copper in regards to all technology. The chemistry is quite similar when looking at electric car batteries, phone batteries and everything else with rechargeable batteries. These all share copper in their chemistry. With the demand for electric cars growing this has caused the demand for copper to increase because of the amount of copper required for the large batteries needed. This has caused the demand of copper to grow, in the article referenced above it says that to hit current 2050 EV goals it is estimated that we would need to produce 115% more copper then what was extracted from human history up to 2018. Overall the demand has grown and will keep growing as the demand for electric cars grows.