High Voltage: Don’t worry punters, this metal super cycle is just picking up speed

• Metals markets still in super cycle, driven by “irreversible” global energy transition: Benedikt Sobotka
• Global electrification will be a challenge: “mining is a small industry with small budgets – all mining companies together are worth less than Apple”
• Weekly Small Cap Standouts: Ragusa Minerals, Kula Gold

Our High Voltage column wraps all the news driving ASX stocks with exposure to lithium, cobalt, graphite, nickel, rare earths, manganese, magnesium, and vanadium.

It’s been a rough year for most metals thanks to a confluence of factors like war, COVID and some aggressive rate tightening action by central banks around the world.

Battery-facing metals, besides lithium, have not escaped the carnage.

Year to date, copper is -26%, nickel -6%, and cobalt sulphate -41%, while battery graphite has dropped 8.4% since hitting an eight-year high in late May.

Magnet rare earths prices are also down substantially from recent highs.

And yet metals markets remain fundamentally in the supercycle identified in recent years, with demand driven by an “irreversible” global energy transition, Benedikt Sobotka, colourful CEO of diversified miner Eurasian Resources Group, told S&P Global Commodity Insights.

“Renewables are metals-intensive,” he says.

“Particularly in Europe the current energy crisis is only going to accelerate the energy transition: billions of dollars are being invested in wind and solar, while nuclear is being revived in some areas.

“This means millions of tons of steel, aluminium, rare earths, [copper] and battery metals.”

Overall, electrification is going to be challenge because of the amount of metal needed, Sobotka says.

“In relative terms, mining is a small industry with small budgets – all mining companies together are worth less than Apple,” he says.

“To meet the demand for material the industry will need to grow incredibly fast, in increasingly complicated geographies with ESG and licensing regulations that are becoming more stringent.”

READ: We need ‘+330 mines in 12 years’ to feed battery demand. These ASX graphite, lithium, nickel and cobalt stocks can answer the call

Battery Metals Winners and Losers

Here’s how a basket of ASX stocks with exposure to lithium, cobalt, graphite, nickel, rare earths, magnesium, manganese, and vanadium is performing>>>

Battery metals stocks missing from our list? Shoot a mail to [email protected].

Weekly Small Cap Standouts

RAGUSA MINERALS (ASX:RAS)

This market darling hit fresh seven-year highs after announcing that maiden drilling at its NT lithium project would start next week.

Additional lithium targets have also been identified, RAS says. One of them boasts a ~150m outcrop width.

“The company is very excited as we prepare to commence our maiden drilling program at our strategic and highly prospective NT Lithium Project,” says chair Jerko Zuvela, also MD at near term lithium producer Argosy (ASX:AGY).

The RAS share price is now up ~450% year-to-date.

KULA GOLD (ASX:KGD)

On Monday last week, KGD announced plans to raise $1.8m to fast-track its WA lithium exploration and “assess new opportunities in the sector”.

Funds raised from the placement will focus on accelerating lithium exploration work at the company’s 100% owned Brunswick project in WA — ~45km from the Greenbushes lithium mine — as well as follow up recently identified Westonia Ni/PGE/Gold prospects adjacent to the Edna May gold mine, also in WA.

“Kula is also assessing new opportunities in the lithium sector that would complement the existing Brunswick lithium project,” it says.