TY - JOUR
T1 - Sourcing cobalt in the Democratic Republic of the Congo for a responsible net-zero transition: Incentives, risks and stakeholders
AU - Cao, Xintong
AU - Sharmina, Maria
AU - Cuellar Franca, Rosa
PY - 2024/8/1
Y1 - 2024/8/1
N2 - Net-zero technologies and the electrification of transport rely heavily on cobalt-containing equipment. Growing demand for cobalt entails environmental, social and economic sustainability risks of cobalt mining, particularly artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Many studies have raised the importance of motivating stakeholders to source cobalt responsibly. Through a systematic literature review, we identify nine sustainability risks that need to be addressed in the cobalt supply chain, analyse measures for incentivising responsible cobalt sourcing, and map links between the sustainability risks and the measures, to elaborate on the engagement of downstream stakeholders and identify methodological gaps. We group such measures into four incentive mechanisms, where integrating ASM into the cobalt supply chain while further formalising the ASM sector (Incentive Mechanism III) is the key to addressing most sustainability risks. Further deconstructing Incentive Mechanism III demonstrates that upstream stakeholders and governments shoulder most responsibility for its implementation. Engagement of downstream companies (such as electric vehicle manufacturers) is inadequate, given their significant influence both on consumers and on the cobalt supply chain. To engage downstream stakeholders more actively, we recommend establishing dedicated ASM funding pools and providing training for ASM communities.
AB - Net-zero technologies and the electrification of transport rely heavily on cobalt-containing equipment. Growing demand for cobalt entails environmental, social and economic sustainability risks of cobalt mining, particularly artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Many studies have raised the importance of motivating stakeholders to source cobalt responsibly. Through a systematic literature review, we identify nine sustainability risks that need to be addressed in the cobalt supply chain, analyse measures for incentivising responsible cobalt sourcing, and map links between the sustainability risks and the measures, to elaborate on the engagement of downstream stakeholders and identify methodological gaps. We group such measures into four incentive mechanisms, where integrating ASM into the cobalt supply chain while further formalising the ASM sector (Incentive Mechanism III) is the key to addressing most sustainability risks. Further deconstructing Incentive Mechanism III demonstrates that upstream stakeholders and governments shoulder most responsibility for its implementation. Engagement of downstream companies (such as electric vehicle manufacturers) is inadequate, given their significant influence both on consumers and on the cobalt supply chain. To engage downstream stakeholders more actively, we recommend establishing dedicated ASM funding pools and providing training for ASM communities.
KW - Cobalt
KW - Democratic Republic of the Congo
KW - Electric vehicles
KW - Incentives
KW - Responsible sourcing
KW - Supply chains
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85195814582&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.resourpol.2024.105149
DO - 10.1016/j.resourpol.2024.105149
M3 - Article
SN - 0301-4207
VL - 95
JO - Resources Policy
JF - Resources Policy
M1 - 105149
ER -