The Democratic Republic of Congo — and it’s not close. The DRC supplies roughly 70 percent of the world’s cobalt, the single most concentrated critical-mineral supply chain on earth. The Katanga Copperbelt holds an estimated 3.5 million metric tons of reserves, and nearly every EV battery cathode supply chain on the planet runs through it.

Then Kinshasa changed the rules. In early 2025, the DRC suspended cobalt exports outright — and replaced the suspension with a quota system capping exports at 87,000 tons per year through 2027, plus a 9,600-ton-per-year strategic stockpile. The forecast now points to a roughly 10,700-ton global shortfall in 2026 against consumption of about 292,300 tons. Indonesia is rising as an alternative source, but it covers only about a fifth of the gap.

That’s the formula for a supply shock written in government policy. One country, one decision, and the price of every battery on earth moves. The DRC isn’t just the biggest producer — it’s the swing producer, the OPEC of cobalt, and it just reminded the market.

Here’s why this intel is worth paying for. Headlines will tell you cobalt prices spiked. They won’t tell you which traders positioned ahead of the quota announcement, which refiners have DRC offtake locked in, or where the next policy move lands. The Sleeping Giants Club tracks the verified numbers behind the headlines — the quotas, the stockpiles, the shortfalls — so you’re reading the supply chain, not the news cycle.