Molybdenum
Market, Supplier, Risk and
Competitive Intelligence

Industry Outlook & Drivers

Molybdenum Global Market Outlook:

Market Overview:
Global Molybdenum demand: 297 TMT (2020E)
CAGR of 4 percent (2020–2025)

Market Drivers:

• Steel Industry
• Automotive Industry
• Oil & Gas and Petrochemicals

Porter's Analysis on Molybdenum

Supplier Power

• Supplier power is medium to high, as the top five suppliers account for approx. 47 percent of the total global molybdenum production
• This will be offset slightly by commoditized nature of molybdenum at a global level
• This trend is not expected to change in the upcoming years

Barriers to New Entrants

• Production of molybdenum is capital intensive process and requires high upfront cost
• The existing players also have robust distribution networks, whereas the new players have to make significant investments for the same
• Large economies of scale and requirement of technical expertise deter new entrants and hence, barriers to new entrants in the market is high

Intensity of Rivalry

• The intensity of rivalry is expected to be high in upcoming years among the mining companies
• Most of the molybdenum producers are backward integrated, having their own source of raw materials
• This would lead to further intensity of rivalry among the market suppliers

Threat of Substitutes

• There are very few substitutes for molybdenum in its major application in steel and cast iron

• Potential substitutes for molybdenum include:

1. Boron, chromium, niobium (columbium), and vanadium in alloy steels

2. Tungsten in tool steels

3. Graphite, tantalum, and tungsten for refractory materials in high-temperature electric furnaces

4. Cadmium-red, chrome-orange, and organic- orange pigments for molybdenum orange

5. Overall the threat of substitute is medium to low

Buyer Power

• Buyer power is medium, owing to main use in steel and alloys products. This is slightly offset by demand from different types of end-use industries ranging from power to chemicals
• No sector has very high buying power while procuring molybdenum