Equilibrium/Sustainability — Presented by Southern Company — Replacing the ‘blood diamond of batteries’

Today is Monday.  Welcome to Equilibrium, a newsletter that tracks the growing global battle over the future of sustainability. Subscribe here: thehill.com/newsletter-signup. As the global transition to electric vehicles picks up speed, automakers are racing to reduce their reliance on a metal that has become known as “the blood diamond of batteries,” The New York Times reported.Cobalt, which extends EV battery range and reduces overheating, also comes with a high price tag, the report said. And in the Democratic Republic of Congo — home to the world’s largest cobalt reserves — the metal is mined from “an underworld where children are put to work and unskilled and ill-equipped diggers of all ages get injured or killed,” according to the Times.While one government-appointed official, Albert Yuma Mulimbi, says he’s working to transform the Congo into a reputable…

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