High Voltage: here’s all the latest news driving battery metals stocks

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Each week our new High Voltage column wraps the big news driving battery metal stocks.

We also track a list of ASX 200 battery metals stocks including explorers with exposure to lithium, cobalt, graphite, manganese and vanadium — stocks that are used in energy storage and generally driven by battery news, even if their main application is not yet battery storage.

>> Scroll down for a list of 200 ASX battery metal stocks with exposure to lithium, cobalt, graphite, manganese and vanadium

News flow

Cobalt junior Celsius (ASX:CLA) didn’t make any big announcements this week, but managing director Brendan Borg has been presenting on the Benchmark Minerals Intelligence battery metals roadshow in Perth, Melbourne and Sydney.

Looks like Mr Borg did a convincing job explaining the benefits of the company’s Opuwo cobalt project in Namibia, because the share price jumped almost 50 per cent over the past eight days (Sep 12-20) to 14.5c — its highest point since mid-July.

Australian Vanadium (ASX:AVL) shares gained 19 per cent to 5.1c over the same period — and the stock is now up 264 per cent over the past year.

Australian Vanadium is fast-tracking its Gabanintha vanadium deposit in Western Australia into production amid robust pricing for the emerging battery metal.

The price of vanadium has been steadily rising since the start of the year:

Another notable mover was Argentina-focused Galan Lithium (ASX:GLN) which gained 22 per cent for the past week to 27.5c. In the last 12 months Galan has enjoyed share price growth of 358 per cent.

Former ruby miner, now graphite and vanadium explorer Mustang Resources (ASX:MUS) also gained 22 per cent to 1.1c. It’s still down a long way from its ruby days though.

Mustang is now focused on the development of the Caula vanadium-graphite project in Northern Mozambique, which neighbours the world’s largest graphite resource at Syrah Resources’ (ASX:SYR) Balama Project.

In contrast, lithium developer Kidman (ASX:KDR) has lost 15 per cent since September 12.

A Perth court recommended the lithium miner pay more than $100,000 to make up a shortfall on a minimum expenditure for a mining tenement.

Its shares are sitting at just over $1.08, down from a high of $1.26 on September 12.

Industry News

If aspiring miners like Australian Vanadium or Technology Metals Australia (ASX:TMT) start producing, vanadium could have its own “Elon Musk moment” as it advances towards powering 25 per cent of stationary battery storage by 2028.

That’s the view of Benchmark Minerals Intelligence boss Simon Moores, who spoke at the battery metals research firm’s conference in Perth on Monday.

By 2028 Benchmark predicts 50 per cent of the burgeoning stationary storage market will be lithium-ion, and 25 per cent vanadium flow batteries — also known as vanadium redox flow batteries (or VRFBs).

Vanadium is booming, but nearly every lithium focused explorer or miner has seen their share price drop this year as lithium oversupply fears gain traction.

But these fears are unfounded, Mr Moores said.

Production of lithium-ion batteries is increasing exponentially and will drive long-term demand for materials such as lithium, cobalt, graphite and nickel.

By 2028 these mega battery factories — such as the gigafactories being built by Elon Musk’s Tesla — would need 840,000 tonnes per year of lithium, 193,000 tonnes per year of cobalt, 1.1 million tonnes per year of graphite anode, and 480,000 tonnes of nickel chemical.

And it helps that the world’s biggest furniture seller IKEA has committed, along with 25 other organisations and cities, to rolling out a battery-powered, zero emissions future.

IKEA last week committed to making a quarter of its home deliveries by electric vehicles within two years — increasing to 100 per cent by 2025.

The Climate group says more than 60 States and organisations representing 237 million people and corporate revenue of over $US480 billion – have committed to a zero-emission future over the past year.

But it was a kick in the guts for ASX-listed explorers and miners with projects in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, when the country announced that minerals declared “strategic” will attract a royalty of 10 per cent.

For cobalt that is double the current royalty.

This will make it costlier for ASX-listed miners with cobalt projects in the DRC (or Congo) that are already in production or moving towards production.

Here’s a table of 200 ASX battery metal stocks with exposure to lithium, cobalt, graphite, manganese and vanadium:

Swipe or scroll for full table. Click headings to sort

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