China urged to ease reliance on DRC for cobalt

China is depending too much on the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for cobalt, a crucial component in electric vehicle (EV) batteries, and should take steps to ensure security of supply, delegates said at an industry conference on Tuesday. China, the world's top cobalt consumer, is "over-reliant" on the African country, which accounts for around half of global cobalt supplies, said Wu Lijue, chairperson of Guangdong Jiana Energy Technology Co, a supplier of cobalt salts and other materials for EV battery cathodes.