Copper prices could surge to US$40,000, says top trader Andurand

Copper prices could reach US$40,000 per tonne in the next few years, hedge fund manager Pierre Andurand told the Financial Times.

The metal has risen almost 20% this year, reaching a record $11,000 per tonne (US$5.20 per lb.) this week.

“We are moving towards a doubling of demand growth for copper due to the electrification of the world, including electric vehicles, solar panels, wind farms, as well as military usage and data centers,” the top trader told the Financial Times.

Andurand, a former Goldman Sachs trader who co-founded BlueGold Capital before launching Andurand Capital, manages about US$2 billion in assets.

“I think we could see prices up to US$40,000 per tonne (US$18.18 per lb.) over the next four years or so. I’m not saying it will stay there indefinitely; eventually, we will get a supply response, but that supply response will take more than five years.”

The record-high prices for copper come amid rising demand for critical minerals needed in the green energy transition. 

In another bullish analysis, Jeff Currie, former Goldman Sachs executive and more recently chief strategy officer of Energy Pathways at asset manager Carlyle, told Bloomberg in an interview last week that copper “is the highest conviction trade I have ever seen.”

Currie sees copper prices reaching US$15,000 (US$6.80 per pound).

The demand for copper in the transport sector alone is projected to increase 11.1 times by 2050, compared to 2022. Electric vehicles, for example, can contain more than a mile of copper wiring.

Additionally, the demand for copper needed to expand the global electricity grid is projected to increase by 4.8 times by 2050, compared to 2022.

By 2030, the copper supply gap is projected to approach 10 million tonnes.