Cobalt production in Australia in 2024 — 3,600 t. Ranked 6 in the world out of 13. Since 1995, the indicator has risen by 336.9%.
1995–2024 · tonnes
How the value compares with the world and the groups this territory belongs to: Australia
| Year | t | Change | Change, % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 3,600 | −1,620 | −31.03% |
| 2023 | 5,220 | −570 | −9.84% |
| 2022 | 5,790 | +495 | +9.35% |
| 2021 | 5,295 | −305 | −5.45% |
| 2020 | 5,600 | −100 | −1.75% |
| 2019 | 5,700 | +800 | +16.33% |
| 2018 | 4,900 | −900 | −15.52% |
| 2017 | 5,800 | +330 | +6.03% |
| 2016 | 5,470 | −560 | −9.29% |
| 2015 | 6,030 | −171 | −2.76% |
| 2014 | 6,201 | −199 | −3.11% |
| 2013 | 6,400 | +520 | +8.84% |
| 2012 | 5,880 | +2,030 | +52.73% |
| 2011 | 3,850 | +0 | +0% |
| 2010 | 3,850 | −780 | −16.85% |
| 2009 | 4,630 | −160 | −3.34% |
| 2008 | 4,790 | +50 | +1.05% |
| 2007 | 4,740 | −310 | −6.14% |
| 2006 | 5,050 | +940 | +22.87% |
| 2005 | 4,110 | −440 | −9.67% |
| 2004 | 4,550 | −570 | −11.13% |
| 2003 | 5,120 | +266 | +5.48% |
| 2002 | 4,854 | +542 | +12.57% |
| 2001 | 4,312 | +713 | +19.83% |
| 2000 | 3,598 | +2,588 | +256.16% |
| 1999 | 1,010 | −259 | −20.38% |
| 1998 | 1,269 | +50 | +4.1% |
| 1997 | 1,219 | +277 | +29.41% |
| 1996 | 942 | +118 | +14.32% |
| 1995 | 824 | — | — |
Cobalt production measured as contained metal, from U.S. Geological Survey data. Cobalt is needed for the cathodes of lithium-ion batteries, and its production is concentrated more tightly than that of any other important metal: more than two-thirds of the world total comes from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is because of that concentration that battery makers have spent recent years looking for chemistries with a smaller share of cobalt, or none at all.
Important: Cobalt is almost always mined as a by-product — together with copper or nickel — so its volume depends on the market for the main metal and not only on demand for cobalt itself.
Source: Mineral Commodity Summaries (USGS), license Public domain (work of a U.S. federal agency).
