Molybdenum is a silver-grey, silvery-white colored metal that is ductile, malleable, and highly resistant to corrosion. It has high thermal conductivity and is highly resistant to heat, making it useful for the production of alloys of steel and iron. Moreover, molybdenum has one of the highest melting points of all pure elements, only tungsten and tantalum have higher melting points. It is extracted from molybdenite and the major molybdenite deposits are in Canada, China, Chile, and the United States. According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), Armenia, Mexico, Peru, the U.S., Chile, and China accounted for around 95% of total global molybdenum production in ascending order.
Molybdenum is used in stainless steel (between 2% to 4%) which helps improve the resistance to pitting in chloride environments and to fissure in Fe-Cr alloys and Fe-Cr-Ni alloys. It is one of the major factors in the growth of the molybdenum market. Moreover, the rising demand for steel (structural steel, stainless steel, etc.) is expected to propel the molybdenum market growth. According to the World Steel Association, in 2019, Asia produced 1,341.6 million metric tons of crude steel, an increase of 5.7% compared to 2018. However, fumes and dust generated during mining or metalworking may be toxic, which is expected to hamper the molybdenum market growth.
Molybdenum is widely used in various automotive parts such as clutch, flywheel, etc. due to its excellent strength to weight ratio. Increasing demand for molybdenum from the automotive industry, as well as the rapid growth of the automotive industry in emerging economies, is expected to drive the growth of the market. The growth rate of the automobile industry across India was estimated to be 4.9% from FY 2015 to 2020. The Government of India encourages foreign investment in the automobile sector and has allowed 100% foreign direct investment under the automatic route.
For instance, in December 2019, MG (Morris Garages) planned to invest US$ 429.25 million in India. In terms of geography, the molybdenum market is divided into six regions, such as North America, South America, Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Key players active in the market are adopting various strategies such as business expansion and merger and acquisition to enhance their market presence. For example, in September 2018, Antofagasta planned to start molybdenum extraction at its Centinela Mine in Chile from 2019 to increase the production up to 2,000 tons in 2019.
No comments:
Post a Comment