A source said the LME had made contact with established online venues Trayport and EBS, which are currently focused largely on energy and foreign exchange.
Pourbaix replaces Brian Ferguson, who announced his retirement earlier this year following Cenovus’ $17.7 billion acquisition of oil sands and natural gas assets from ConocoPhillips.
Prices for cobalt metal, used in production of electric vehicle batteries, have tripled to nine-year peaks above $30 a pound from below $10 a pound in late 2015.
U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry has come up with a controversial plan to slow the closure of coal-powered fire plants, under the guise of stabilizing the power grid.