5 Hidden truths about minerals powering the green revolution

The real pressure points in the mineral supply chain

The journey of essential materials from deep within the Earth to our advanced technologies is fraught with challenges that could define the success of the entire energy transition and its sustainability.

It is a common understanding that the world’s green transition depends on a massive increase in the extraction of key minerals. What is rarely discussed is the economic, geopolitical and logistical complexities behind their delivery.

A surprising number of critical minerals are not the primary target of mining operations. Instead, they are “companion elements”; minerals produced as by-products or co-products during the extraction of more common metals like copper, aluminum or iron.

Many of the elements essential for the energy transition, including scandium, cobalt, gallium, and rare earth elements, have a high percentage of their global production obtained this way. For example, gallium is mainly produced as a companion to aluminium, while the rare earth elements needed for electric vehicle (EV) motors and wind turbines are mainly companions to iron production.

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