Flourishing activity in the electric vehicle, power infrastructure, AI and automation sectors will lead to at least 10m tonnes of additional copper consumption over the next decade, commodity trader Trafigura told Reuters.
Technological developments such as artificial intelligence and automation, and the energy transition, which includes electric vehicles and renewable energy, have already driven up demand prospects for copper cable used to conduct electricity.
Estimates of new demand from these applications vary, but Graeme Train, head of metals analysis at Swiss-based Trafigura, told the news agency one third of the 10m tonnes of new demand would come from the electric vehicle sector.
“A third is electricity generation, transmission and distribution, and the rest is for things like automation, manufacturing capex and cooling systems within data centres,” he said.
London-listed company KEFI Gold and Copper plc (LON:KEFI) is an exploration and development company focused on gold and copper deposits in the highly prospective Arabian-Nubian Shield. The Company operates in Ethiopia and Saudi Arabia with projects including Tulu Kapi project, Jibal Qutman EL and Hawiah.