EV Pioneer Fisker Joins Cobalt Producer's Board

First Cobalt names electric-vehicle pioneer and OEM car designer Henrik Fisker to its board of directors.

Fisker is chairman and CEO of the California-based EV maker bearing his name.

Calling Fisker a global automotive design icon, First Cobalt Chairman Paul Matysek says Fisker brings his unique EV understanding and outside perspective to the company.

Fisker’s track record includes the BMW Z8, Aston Martin DB9/V8 Vantage and VLF Force 1 in addition to the Fisker Karma.

“We are confident that our collaborative efforts can reach larger audiences as we endeavor to become a leading producer of cobalt in the U.S,” Matysek says.

Fisker Inc. holds pending patents on a solid-state battery that promises to deliver 2.5 times the energy density of lithium-ion batteries.

The appointment comes amid controversy over some automakers using cobalt mined in the Democratic Republic of Congo for battery production, often using child labor. That’s resulted in an industry that's been criticized as the “blood diamonds of batteries.”

A First Cobalt statement says the company and Henrik Fisker believe in developing an extractive industry that upholds the highest in ethical and environmental standards and strives to create sustainability for future generations.

 “I have made a commitment to contribute to a better world all the way down the supply chain,” he says. “We must stop looking at innovation superficially and start taking responsibility for our products end-to-end and give our customers the true choice to be part of a sustainable future.”

Fisker says he has spent considerable time with the First Cobalt team, visiting their Iron Creek cobalt project in Idaho as well as the First Cobalt Refinery in Ontario.

First Cobalt President and CEO Trent Mell says the company’s strategy is to explore, mine and refine cobalt material in North America to provide cobalt to the American EV market.