Top 3 ASX Cobalt Stocks (Updated January 2026)

1. Ardea Resources (ASX:ARL)

Year-to-date gain: 108.96 percent
Market cap: AU$145.46 million
Share price: AU$0.70

Ardea Resources is developing its wholly owned Kalgoorlie nickel-cobalt project located in Western Australia. The large-scale project includes the Goongarrie Hub deposit.

A 2023 prefeasibility study for Goongarrie Hub demonstrated an ore reserve of 194.1 million tonnes at 0.05 percent cobalt and 0.7 percent nickel, resulting in 99,000 tonnes of contained cobalt and 1.36 million tonnes of contained nickel.

Ardea is currently working towards a definitive feasibility study (DFS) with funding from its strategic partners, Sumitomo Metal Mining (TSE:5713) and Mitsubishi (TSE:8058). The DFS is on track for completion in the first half of 2026.

On December 8, Ardea updated shareholders on its DFS, reporting completion remains on track for H1 2026. The project is based on a simplified high-pressure acid leach flowsheet that will increase output to 3.5 million tonnes per year.

The Australian government renewed Kalgoorlie’s major project status in October of last year.

After starting the trading at AU$0.33 per share, Ardea’s stock value rose alongside the March 2025 cobalt price spike to a then high of AU$0.48 on March 24. The share price managed to stay above the AU$0.40 level over the next two quarters.

Riding the upward trajectory of cobalt and nickel prices in Q4 2025, shares of Ardea reached a high of AU$0.73 on January 7.

2. Coda Minerals (ASX:COD)

Year-to-date gain: 94.29 percent
Market cap: AU$66.96 million
Share price: AU$0.175

Coda Minerals’ main asset is the Elizabeth Creek copper-cobalt-silver project located in South Australia’s Olympic copper province.

An updated scoping study for the project released at the end of 2024 shows a 16 year mine life with the potential for steady state annual production of around 26,700 tonnes of copper, 1,300 tonnes of cobalt and 1.13 million ounces of silver.

Coda’s plan for Elizabeth Creek includes three open-pit mines, one underground mine and a hydrometallurgical processing plant. In addition to the production of copper-cobalt concentrate in Stage 1, the company also intends to produce copper cathode and battery-grade cobalt sulphate once the processing plant is completed in Stage 2.

On January 12, Coda provided an exploration update on its drilling at the Elizabeth Creek project, which it said is 70 percent complete. At its Emmie Bluff deposit, the company has completed six drill holes of the 12 planned, with two holes in progress. It has also completed the seven drill holes planned across the project's MG14 and Windabout deposits.

The company said that with drilling nearing completion, it was rapidly moving forward with its pre-feasibility study, adding that it has advanced the approvals pathway and awarded work-package contracts.

Shares of Coda Minerals traded sideways in a range of AU$0.07 to AU$0.09 for much of 2025. Supported by strong gains in copper, silver and cobalt, Coda’s stock hit a high of AU$0.195 on January 14.

3. Cobalt Blue Holdings (ASX:COB)

Year-to-date gain: 40 percent
Market cap: AU$52.55 million
Share price: AU$0.091

Cobalt Blue is a rare cobalt primary mining company focused on developing the Kwinana cobalt refinery in Western Australia, as well as its flagship Broken Hill cobalt project in the Australian state of New South Wales.

Battery minerals trader Iwatani (TSE:8088) is Cobalt Blue's partner for the refinery in Kwinana. The refinery will produce battery-grade cobalt sulphate from third-party material with a capacity of 3,000 tonnes per year in Stage 1. A potential Stage 2 expansion at the refinery could treat cobalt-nickel hydroxide from its Broken Hill project.

The Broken Hill project holds a mineral resource of 126.5 million tonnes of ore grading 690 parts per million cobalt for 87,000 tonnes of cobalt alongside sulphur and nickel. In July 2025, the Australian government granted a three year extension to Broken Hill's federal major project status.

Cobalt Blue reported in September that it received approval to begin construction at Kwinana, which it said was a milestone towards a final investment decision (FID) for the refinery.

On November 21, Cobalt Blue provided an update to the Kwinana cobalt refinery’s financial metrics based on revised feedstock sources, product diversification and updates to economic assumptions. The statement noted an increase in post-tax net present value to AU$155 million from AU$90 million, an increased internal rate of return to 32 percent from 23 percent and a jump in total free cash flow to AU$503 million from AU$367 million.

In a funding announcement on December 8, Cobalt Blue said it had raised AU$5.3 million in institutional funding, which will in part be used to reach the remaining milestones toward the completion of the FID at Kwinana, which is expected in 2026. The company's remaining goals include finalizing binding offtake agreements and consolidating support for funding the development of the refinery.

Shares of Cobalt Blue have spent most of 2025 trading in the AU$0.05 to AU$0.06 range. However, the stock's value rocketed to a year-to-date high of AU$0.31 on October 15 on rising cobalt prices.