Cobalt production in Eastern Africa in 2024 — 2,852 t. Since 1995, the indicator has fallen by 2.7%.
1995–2024 · tonnes
How the value compares with the world and the groups this territory belongs to: Eastern Africa
| Year | t | Change | Change, % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 2,852 | −900 | −23.99% |
| 2023 | 3,752 | +200 | +5.63% |
| 2022 | 3,552 | +1,305 | +58.08% |
| 2021 | 2,247 | +1,127 | +100.63% |
| 2020 | 1,120 | −2,144 | −65.69% |
| 2019 | 3,264 | −1,173 | −26.44% |
| 2018 | 4,437 | −1,265 | −22.18% |
| 2017 | 5,702 | −3,080 | −35.07% |
| 2016 | 8,782 | +1,803 | +25.83% |
| 2015 | 6,979 | −983 | −12.35% |
| 2014 | 7,962 | −357 | −4.29% |
| 2013 | 8,319 | +2,284 | +37.85% |
| 2012 | 6,035 | −2,167 | −26.42% |
| 2011 | 8,202 | −611 | −6.93% |
| 2010 | 8,813 | +2,934 | +49.91% |
| 2009 | 5,879 | +1,266 | +27.44% |
| 2008 | 4,613 | −77 | −1.64% |
| 2007 | 4,690 | +32 | +0.69% |
| 2006 | 4,658 | −871 | −15.75% |
| 2005 | 5,529 | −553 | −9.09% |
| 2004 | 6,082 | +2,871 | +89.41% |
| 2003 | 3,211 | −779 | −19.52% |
| 2002 | 3,990 | −192 | −4.59% |
| 2001 | 4,182 | +1,305 | +45.36% |
| 2000 | 2,877 | −1,501 | −34.29% |
| 1999 | 4,378 | −583 | −11.75% |
| 1998 | 4,961 | +933 | +23.16% |
| 1997 | 4,028 | −801 | −16.59% |
| 1996 | 4,829 | +1,898 | +64.76% |
| 1995 | 2,931 | — | — |
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).