What are some of the uses of tantalum or niobium?
LM: In general, tantalum and niobium are suitable for applications requiring hardness, resistance to extremely high temperatures, and the ability to store and release electrical charges quickly, so they’re ideal for aircraft, motor parts, cell phones, and particularly for capacitors where electricity changes in fluctuation very rapidly. And, as mentioned, new uses are being discovered and coming forward very rapidly. TGR: Do you think there will still be a demand for these metals if we face more economic downturn? LM: There is a moderate demand. Because of the economic slowdown, a lot of manufacturers have cut back production. I’m thinking as soon as it appears clear that the economies are going to advance, there’s going to be a great deal of catch-up on the part of these manufacturing companies to rebuild their inventories of tantalum, niobium and other specialty metals. So I look forward under those circumstances to a very sharp increase in new demand to come into the market. And the
