https://oilprice.com/Alternative-En...s-China-Losing-Interest-In-Nuclear-Power.htmlRenewables now growing faster than other energy supply in China.
We have had a couple clear indicators as to where the West is headed in the last few years & they’re all pointing one way.
Out of oil & into cobalt.
I know we are primarily a nickel outfit but that is also headed for significant demand growth ( class 1 nickel, not the mountains of garbage we see being sold/priced on LME etc ).
Oil vs Cobalt real world indicators of focus:
1. The US starts to sell its strategic oil reserve.
What does that say? To me it says ‘this is no longer a strategic asset & we know that it’s monetary value as well as its strategic necessity is on the way out’.
2. The US declares cobalt a strategic asset.
What does that say? To me it says the reverse of the above- that cobalt is now what is needed & will be fought over.
3. The West starts to pull out of Syria.
Why is that significant? Because we & Russia were there primarily to decide which side would win the right to build an oil/gas pipeline through Syria to Europe.
We wanted one that would pass through Israel, the Russians want one that would pass through Turkey.
Looks like we’re now saying ‘ok Ivan- you knock yourself out spending money on that, we’ll save a few bucks while we ready ourselves for the cobalt stoush in Africa’.
Remember we don’t need to fight an overt war in the DRC to secure supply.
All we need to do is ‘win the hearts and minds’ of the locals & the West has centuries more experience in that region than China does, with plenty of local connections direct to that continent. ( Many Africans live in the West while they are still items of curiosity in China because there are so few ).
Certainly interesting times & on the other front ( political ), I’d say we’re still in for some heartache through to mid February as the Trump team push this ‘wreck it so we can the be seen to fix it’ game right to the line in preparation for his 2019 re-election campaign.
It will just be too obvious if they flip the switch from ‘grumble grumble, no one is out friend!’ to ‘ok, we may have gone too far there, can we be friends again?’ on January 1, for example.
Instead I see a slow turnaround which first requires a slow turnaround in language.
First will come ‘things weren’t as bad we thought they were & we can see a way forward, if our international friends will come to the party’.
Anyways all good reminders that no matter how much things change, they stay the same so have a good Christmas all, make it a safe one.
Some who had their nose out of joint might even throw me a like next year, realising that likes etc should be based on content, not on who is posting that content. ( that should help them if confused as to why I liked their stuff when it was in line with my own thinking even though I don’t seem to ‘like’ them ).
