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Copper demand is soaring due to the expansion of global power grids

The copper demand is growing faster than expected, due to the billions of dollars invested in modernising and expanding power grids worldwide for the digital and renewable energy revolutions which require vast amounts of electricity.

A lack of investment into new mines is limiting the supply of major producers, including Chile and Democratic Republic of Congo, which will lead to a long period of high prices.

Analysts predict that copper prices will reach record levels above $12,000 per ton by the end of this decade. This is a 23% increase from the current level of $9,700 per ton.

Copper's superior durability, conductivity and versatility have made it difficult to replace.

According to the International Energy Agency, grid investment will reach $400 billion this coming year after reaching a record of $390 billion by 2024.

Copper is often an undervalued component of grid infrastructure. Many people understand the need for grid expansion, but underestimate the amount of copper that will be required. Michael Finch is the head of strategic initiatives of Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, a consultancy. He pointed out the investment needed especially in the U.S.A., UK, and China.

BMI's latest figures reveal that the global demand for copper to upgrade power generation and transmission systems will increase to 14.87 millions metric tons in 2030, up from 12.52million tons this year.

DATA CENTRES ELECTRIC VEHICLES DRIVE GRID ON DEMAND

Michael Widmer, an analyst at Bank of America, predicts that global copper demand will increase by 10% from this year to 30,32 million tons in 2030. Widmer predicts that the global copper market will be in deficit of 1.84 million tonnes by 2030.

In regions where artificial intelligence and machine-learning data centres are rapidly expanding, the need for resilient grids becomes even more acute.

Peter Charland, Global Information and Communications Technology Lead at AECOM (a global infrastructure consultancy company), said that "Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning data centres require bigger, better and faster computing." This means more power.

CRU, a consultancy, said it expected copper demand in data centres to increase from 78,000 tonnes in 2020 to 260,000 tonnes this year and exceed 650,000 tons by 2030.

"The electricity grid infrastructure is a bottleneck, and it's not just for data centres." This includes onshore and off-shore wind power, solar, and electric vehicles," Egest Balla said, wire and cable analyst at CRU.

The copper content of electric vehicles is also significantly higher than that of traditional internal combustion engines.

BMI predicts that the demand for copper in electric vehicles will increase to 2.2 millions tons by 2030. This is up from just 204,00 tons in 2020.

Maria Cristina Bifulco is the chief investor relations officer and sustainability officer of Italian cable manufacturer Prysmian. Prysmian is the largest copper buyer in the world.

Prysmian purchases 2%-3% global refined copper production.

ALUMINIUM, FIBRE OPTIC CABLING CONSIDERED

The looming shortages of copper and the record-high prices have led to a wave innovation, including recycling and substitution in industries like construction and manufacturing. Copper costs make up a significant portion of production costs.

Aluminium has long been regarded as a cheaper option, but at a cost of about a third that of copper, it has been abandoned in the wiring of data centres.

Charland, from AECOM, said that there was a time when copper wasn't meeting the demand. Some people coated aluminum cables with copper. "That was short-lived due to the performance issues."

Recycling can help achieve sustainability goals as it uses 65% less energy to refine or produce secondary copper than primary production. Analysts predict that scrap copper will increase to 11 million tonnes in 2030, up from 10 million tons currently.

Fibre optic cables have already replaced copper in the data transmission industry. They are more efficient and offer a higher bandwidth.

Matt Miller, Global Networks Lead at AECOM said: "It is cheaper to make glass than to mine copper." "Silicon can be found in abundance on the beach. You can grab as much of it as you like."

Analysts say that it is unlikely that the copper supply shortage will be resolved anytime soon. This is especially true for structural projects on which governments base their economic growth plans.

"You can do green energy, but without a grid to support it, you will have a problem." CRU's Balla said.

(source: Reuters)