Interesting article published on Morningstar recently - the first of a two part series on this topic

“Every unit you can get your hands on”: Politics and protest disrupt global rush for copper

Electric vehicles use up to four times as much copper as combustion equivalents. Wind farms, solar panels and electricity networks also depend on the reddish-brown metal. A staple of the telephone wires and pipes of the industrial revolution, copper is finding new uses in the transition to renewable energy

Change won't come cheap. Copper prices are at multi-decade highs as covid-shuttered mines struggle to match growing demand. Raw materials make up between half and three quarters the cost of batteries, according to the International Energy Agency. Copper alone is 14% of the investment cost for electricity grids

Now a perfect storm of politics and protest threatens to keep prices elevated for years to come