Will there be enough molybdenum ore for pipelines, nuclear power...

Will there be enough molybdenum ore for pipelines, nuclear power plants and for the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste storage facility?

Sprott Asset Management Research Associate Maria Smirnova, who follows molybdenum for the Toronto-based money manager, believes this strategic metal was bright prospects for the next few years. “We see demand growing, while there are not many new sources of supply,” she observed. “In a market where 16-20 million pounds of new supply is required every year to keep up with demand, we are aware of less than 10 million pounds coming on-stream next year from new mines.”

Smirnova also agreed with Cook and Michael Magyar of the USGS, who discussed moly byproduct mines in Part One of this series, and said, “Existing mines are struggling to grow/maintain production.” She pointed to Kennecott’s copper/molybdenum mine in north central Utah , “For example, the Bingham Canyon mine is expected to produce 10 to 15 percent less metal next year due to lower grades.” She included Chile ’s mammoth copper/moly producer in her assessment, “Codelco has stated they will not repeat the record levels of 2005 due to ‘conditions of the deposits and availability of molybdenum.’”

As Cook pointed out, the mega projects could spell trouble. Smirnova added to his comments, “In the longer term, there are a number of large projects that could provide over 100 million pounds of new mine supply by 2010. Unfortunately, most of these are low-grade projects requiring large amounts of capital investment.” What will happen to these promises of abundant new supply? Smirnova responded, “We think that at least some of this expected supply will get delayed or mothballed altogether due to permitting issues and financing difficulties.”