Why secondary copper is becoming strategic
Electrification is pulling copper demand upward faster than new mines can be permitted. Scrap is closing the gap.
Grid upgrades, renewables and electric vehicles all consume copper in quantities that primary mining cannot easily match: a new mine takes well over a decade from discovery to first production, while ore grades at existing operations keep declining.
Secondary copper — recovered from cable, tube, radiators, transformer windings and industrial off-cuts — needs about 70–85% less energy per tonne than mining and refining virgin ore, and it is available in months rather than decades.
Grades still decide the value
Bare bright copper wire (No.1) commands the highest price because it can go straight to a re-melter with minimal treatment. No.2 copper, with solder, paint or oxidation, carries a discount that reflects the refining step needed to remove impurities.
Insulated cable is priced on recoverable copper content, so accurate granulation yield testing — not visual estimation — is what protects both buyer and seller.
Practical advice for suppliers
Separate at source. Mixing No.1 and No.2 into one lot means the whole lot is settled at the lower grade. Keeping brass, bronze and copper-bearing alloys in distinct piles routinely adds more value than any negotiation on price.