Agenda
Cobalt in Focus: Powering the Next Chapter of Critical Minerals
- 12 May 2026Hyatt Regency Hesperia, Madrid
- 13 May 2026Hyatt Regency Hesperia, Madrid
Registration & welcome coffee
Workshop. Cobalt Circularity: Exploring Value Capture in an Era of Complexity
This workshop is part of the Cobalt Institute-sponsored PhD research exploring circular economy opportunities in the cobalt sector and how circularity impacts geopolitical dynamics. It identify circular actions being carried out, challenges in achieving circular objectives, and opportunities and growth potential. It will also look to identify emerging trends in the secondary production of cobalt to allow the prioritisation of circular initiatives.
The workshop is open to stakeholders from across the entire cobalt value chain. It will provide an opportunity to explore how circularity can be integrated into your operations and strategic planning. Insights gathered during the session will contribute to one of the project’s PhD case studies and will be shared later in the year.
Evi Petavratzi
Juan Pablo Mardones
Tom Fairlie
Networking lunch
Workshop sessions
Cobalt Learning Group On Tour: The ESG Landscape in China – Practical Insights for the Cobalt Value Chain
Cobalt Institute’s Cobalt Learning Group presents a workshop on the ESG landscape in China and its implications for global cobalt sourcing. Focusing on practical insight and shared learning, the workshop explores policy, market, and industry drivers shaping the ESG landscape in China, how these influence ESG practice in the cobalt value chain, and what downstream actors, investors, and other stakeholders need to know to engage responsibly across China-linked supply chains.
Aligning Chemical Regulation with Strategic Priorities in a Changing Geopolitical Landscape
Chemical regulation is increasingly intersecting with geopolitical dynamics, strategic supply chains, and industrial policy. As competition for critical materials intensifies, policymakers face the challenge of balancing safety, resiliency, and economic security. This workshop will explore how chemical regulations can align with strategic priorities while maintaining global cooperation in an increasingly fragmented geopolitical environment.
Cocktail reception
Cocktail reception, Circulo de Bellas Artes.
Welcome coffee
Congress open
Dinah McLeod, Director General, Cobalt Institute
Dinah McLeod
Fireside chat. The Future of Cobalt in the DRC: Leadership in Action
H.E. Louis Watum Kabamba
Dinah McLeod
Fireside chat. Women Powering the Critical Minerals Era
Marie-Chantal Kaninda
Gracelin Baskaran
Dinah McLeod
Panel: State of the Cobalt Market
This session will mark the launch of the Cobalt Market Report 2025 and provide an in-depth discussion of the key trends that drove the cobalt industry in 2025. Speakers will explore the impact of recent export bans and quota policies, shifting geopolitical dynamics, and evolving supply and demand patterns.
William Talbot
Ying Lu
Meidy Katrin Lengkey
Kwasi Ampofo
Marina Demidova
Coffee break
Introductory remarks
Patrick Luabeya
Panel: DRC: Responsible governance of a strategic sector – from policy design to market impact
Through 2025, the DRC has taken significant steps to design and implement new controls across the cobalt sector, including export frameworks, ASM processing initiatives, actions against illegal mining, and further progress towards ASM formalisation. Together, these measures represent an increasingly integrated approach to responsible governance of a strategic mineral.
This session will explore how these initiatives connect within the government’s longer-term vision, how implementation is progressing in practice, and what this means for cobalt supply chains and markets going forward.
Eric Kalala
Jean-Luc Mathey
Esther Rodriguez
Alain Ciabu Kota
Jean Jacques Kayembe Mufwankolo
Susannah McLaren
Networking lunch
Panel: From Traceability to Transparency: What Does It Mean for ESG in the Cobalt Value Chain?
Traceability has rapidly become a central feature of responsible cobalt sourcing, but what does it mean in practice today? This panel takes stock of where traceability stands across the cobalt value chain, drawing on upstream and downstream perspectives, and explores how traceability can better support meaningful transparency and positive ESG outcomes. The session offers a balanced reflection on progress to date, key challenges, and priorities for next steps.
Cecilia Mattea
Ben Katz
Sara Olsson
Leonor von Limburg
Tom Fairlie
Panel: Cobalt at a crossroads: how should policymakers respond to geopolitical tensions?
Critical minerals and cobalt markets have been buffeted by geopolitical winds in 2025. What is the role for collaborative policymaking in an increasingly uncollaborative world?
Peter Handley
Wouter Ghyoot
Joel Riethmiller
Mahnaz Khan
