Trafigura: AI to Boost Copper Demand by End-2030

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): According to Saad Rahim, Chief Economist at Trafigura, artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to add at least 1 million tonnes per annum of copper demand by the end of the current decade. The AI-driven demand surge could further exacerbate the copper supply-demand imbalance, thus leading to higher copper prices, he said.

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Speaking at the Financial Times Commodities Global Summit in Switzerland, the copper demand growth from data centers and related to that from AI has exploded recently. However, the Trafigura chief declined to comment on what the global copper demand would be by end-2030.

Data centres use large quantities of copper across various electrical applications, including busbars, power cables, electrical connectors, power distribution strips, heat exchangers and sinks. The copper content of data centres is estimated at around 27 tonnes per MW of applied power.

As per studies, the North American data center infrastructure market value is predicted to see huge expansion from $33 billion in 2020 to $70 billion in 2030 and $185 billion in 2040. Also, the copper consumption by data centres is projected to rise from 197,000 tonnes in 2020 to 238,000 tonnes in 2030 and to 293,000 tonnes in 2040.