$550m Debt, page-33

Strauss, I have some interest in Cobalt, only in so far as a WA junior gold/copper/nickel explorer I am into has a noisy neighbour whose MC is double and are successfully raising capital for diamond drilling on the back of some fairly loose interpretations of historical drilling, which frankly amazes me. There is some talk the tenements we hold are equally prospective for cobalt. However it concerns me that Cobalt (and lithium for that matter) may be a repeat of the RE bubble. Seems to me cobalt is generally a byproduct of an existing copper/nickel operation and to come across a standalone deposit is unlikely. Of course, I hope some nearlogy rubs off on the company I'm invested in, but I suspect it would be a trap and a profit taking opportunity, I would rather we just concentrated on the gold and copper prospects... there are several similarities I see in the REE bubble and current inflated cobalt/lithium prices - you have metals that have found a unique use in a technology (in this case batteries), but if prices continue on an exponential path, other technologies will get developed, that's just basic economics. And in the particular case of cobalt, one reason for this is a major proportion of supply is from one country with inherent sovereign risk, Congo. We all know about the China/Japan geopolitics that led to the REE bubble - things change. And if they don't, supply and demand laws ensure that every junior explorer and their wives and dogs throw money at the next great cobalt discovery, until there is enough if the stuff even for Elon Musk and everyone he's relocated to Mars and either way, the price bubble bursts. Just my once bitten, twice shy thoughts.