REVISTA DYNA ENERGÍA

Copper is on the rise again and it is likely to be a trend

One of the reasons for this is the boom in renewable energy, especially wind power, whose requirements for this metal are enormous.

This is described by Energy Monitor in a recent article. Offshore wind turbines require 8 tons of copper for every megawatt of generating capacity, and citing data from the International Energy Agency, an average 3.6MW turbine, which can power more than 3,300 average EU homes, will contain about 29 tons of copper.

This upward trend in copper demand will only intensify in the coming years as the world expands its renewable energy generation capacity.

It is likely to be supported by the continuing threat of supply disruption due to political uncertainty in the Andean countries, Chile and Peru, the world's leading producers. Some 42% of copper mine production is subject to political uncertainty that could lead to risks on future production.

The uncertainty is helping to support world copper prices, which have reached record highs thanks to the recovery of demand in China, as well as the rapid development of renewables, which is expected to boost demand for the metal in the coming years.

There is also a shortage of new supply arriving even as demand grows, and the supply shortage is likely to continue until copper prices rise by as much as 50% from current levels.