Top Cobalt Stocks 2016: TSX Top Gainers

Cobalt demand is growing. According to research and consultancy firm CRU, global consumption for refined cobalt will reach 100,000 tons in 2017, with demand to grow at an average rate of 5 percent annum for the next 10 years.
We took a look at these cobalt mining companies listed on the TSX who had positive gains in 2016:

eCobalt Solutions (TSX:ECS)

eCobalt Solutions is focused on providing battery grade cobalt salts that are ethically sourced and environmentally sound, produced safely and responsibly in the United States. eCobalt’s primary asset is its 100 percent owned Idaho Cobalt Project (ICP) located in Lemhi County, Idaho.
The company commissioned a feasibility study in September 2016, with the final report expected in Q1 2017.
eCobalt’s stock has gained 580 percent in 2016.

Fortune Minerals (TSX:FT)

Fortune Minerals of London, Ontario, expects to benefit from the development of its NICO Cobalt-Gold-Bismuth-Copper project, in the Northwest Territories. NICO, which is comprised of a planned mine and mill and a refinery in Saskatchewan, is positioned to become a Canadian producer of battery-grade cobalt chemicals with 1.1 million ounces of gold and 12 per cent of global bismuth reserves as co-products.
More than $115 million has been spent by Fortune in advancing this project, and the company has a positive feasibility study and environmental assessment approvals for both the mine and concentrator.
Fortune Minerals’ stock has gained 316.67 percent in 2016.

First Quantum Minerals (TSX:FM)

First Quantum Minerals is a well-established and growing metals and mining company producing mainly copper, gold, nickel and zinc. The Company’s assets are located in Zambia, Spain, Mauritania, Australia, Finland, Turkey, Panama, Argentina and Peru, and focuses on cobalt as a byproduct of its Ravensthorpe nickel mine. The mine achieved commercial production on December 28, 2011 and is 100 percent owned by First Quantum.
First Quantum announced comparative earnings of $38 million and cash flows from continuing operating activities of $304 million for Q2 2016. The company also reported that it ended the quarter with $895 million in unrestricted cash, $593 million in committed, undrawn facilities, and a working capital of $553 million.
First Quantum Minerals’ stock has gained 221 percent in 2016.

Lundin Mining (TSX:LUN)

Lundin Mining operates in Chile, the USA, Portugal, and Sweden. The company primarily produces copper, nickel and zinc, with cobalt as a byproduct.
The company holds a 24 percent stake in the world-class Tenke Fungurume copper-cobalt mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and in the Freeport Cobalt Oy business, which includes a cobalt refinery located in Kokkola, Finland.
In September, Lundin Mining updated its mineral resource and reserve estimates for its Candelaria Mining Complex in Chile: total measured and indicated mineral resources have increased to 689.0 Mt at 0.64 percent copper, from 643.6 Mt at 0.63 percent copper in July 2015.
Lundin Mining’s stock has gained 68 percent in 2016.
This is an updated version of an article originally published on the Investing News Network in 2016.
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Editor’s note: In an earlier version of this article, we included Caledonia Mining (TSX:CAL) in error. The company no longer has interests in the cobalt-copper exploration project in Zambia, and have thus taken them out of this list. We apologize for this error.

Securities Disclosure: I, Pia Rivera, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
Editorial Disclosure: eCobalt Solutions and Fortune Minerals are clients of the Investing News Network. This article is not paid for content.