November 21, 2018

Electronics and electric vehicles are revolutionizing the future; redefining how the world works, plays and lives.

These technologies are largely dependent on minerals — the most common being cobalt, lithium, bismuth and rare earth elements; increasingly referred to broadly as technology metals. And, as with most revolutions, there is a crisis of conscience that needs to be addressed.

Cobalt and the Congo

It is perhaps most apparent in the cobalt market. About two-thirds of current global supply of this essential battery mineral comes from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) where conflict and political instability define the investment environment.

In fact, reports and accusations of exploitation are forcing companies to reconsider doing business in the DRC. Far beyond worrying about the bottom line, it’s an ethical crisis that, according to reporting in the September 2018 issue of Fortune Magazine, has investors looking for ways to avoid doing business in the region all together.

“Are consumers going to demand childlabor-free, corruption-free electric vehicles? I think it is coming,” said Tyler Gillard, senior legal adviser to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, in the same report.

With cobalt demand set to rise by double digits in the next five to 10 years, if companies want to keep their reputations clean, a solution is needed quickly.

An Ethical Alternative

Enter Canada’s Northwest Territories (NWT). In Fortune Minerals’ NICO project, the NWT does have an advanced, large-scale cobalt prospect with the added benefit of a transparent management system that empowers Indigenous populations, political stability and a predictable regulatory regime. And cobalt is just one example of how the NWT could be a safe, stable, predictable home to supply technology metals currently largely extracted from volatile jurisdictions.

Promising Showings

Cobalt is just the start — over recent decades, dozens of instances of these valuable metals have been discovered throughout the territory, and some more advanced exploration projects are underway.

A Map Outlining Tech Metals in the NWT

With so much still to be learned, and nearly a million square kilometres of terrain still to be explored, the fact so many instances of technology metals are already known is incredibly promising.

For more information on the NWT’s potential, click here.