A123 removed cobalt price swings from EV batteries

Fluctuations in the price of rare-earth metals such as palladium, used in catalytic converters, have plagued automakers for decades. Cobalt has been a vexing ingredient for electric vehicle batteries. Cathodes can be more than 60 percent cobalt by weight. As speculators have anticipated rising demand for the metal, its price has spiked — a purchasing manager's nightmare. Over the past 15 years, cobalt generally has cost $10 to $15 a pound, but occasionally has surged to more than $50 a pound.