General discussion, page-11870

"These companies seem to be ignoring the fact that unless they have a Tier 1 deposit, there's no room for new players in this market. Plus, if they can't produce niobium for less than $15-$18 per kg, their mines won't be viable."

Finally your research is bearing fruit, CBMM holds all the cards and controls the price.
Do a little research on the 30% sale of CBMM and you will realise that it was orchestrated over many years with negotiations taking up 2 of those years. During this time the price of Nb nearly doubled , WHY???
The buyers, in the main were long term customers with no other option to source their Nb requirements.
It could be argued that CBMM forced them into the sale to ensure supply and that is probably why the Japanese government contributed to the deal by taking a 2.5% stake in CBMM.
Many people think that the sale price is somehow relative to what WA1 is worth, the fact is the sale was negotiated by a monopoly supplier setting the time frame leaving customers (steel mills) little options. They could pay ever increasing prices at the whim of CBMM or pay a substantial premium for substantial reduced long term Nb pricing. The sale was more like a complicated long term off take agreement to ensure supply at a discount.
At the time of the sale FeNb was selling for around $41 USD I am confident that post sale the participants in the purchase arrangement were paying a long term (10 years) price of around $25 USD