#41Nb
Niobium Price
Strategic Metal
~90% of production goes into HSLA steel as ferroniobium. Also used in superconducting magnets (MRI, particle accelerators) and aerospace alloys. Brazil (CBMM) controls ~90% of global supply — the most concentrated critical mineral supply chain.
- Main trade forms
- Ferroniobium (FeNb), Nb₂O₅, metal
- Available from
- BR, CA, AU
- Purity range
- 99.5%–99.99%
Last update: Apr 4, 2026
4 records
4 records
Retail Reference
$351/kg
Metal High purity · 100 g
navycbmichael (eBay) · US · Apr 4, 2026
Retail Premium: 5.0×
Bulk Benchmark
$70/kg
Metal 99.9% (3N)
Tianjin Chengmai (Alibaba) · FOB · Apr 4, 2026
Applications
| Application | Role | Significance |
|---|---|---|
| HSLA steel microalloying | Ferroniobium (FeNb) addition at 0.02 to 0.10% | ~90% of Nb demand. Pipeline steel, automotive structural steel, and bridge plate all benefit: small Nb additions yield massive grain refinement and strength gains. |
| NbTi superconducting wire | Nb-46.5%Ti alloy filaments in Cu matrix | MRI magnets (every clinical scanner), particle accelerator dipoles, NMR magnets. Mature, low-cost LTSC. |
| Nb3Sn superconductor | Bronze-process or PIT Nb3Sn strands | ITER fusion magnets, high-field NMR (>1 GHz), accelerator quadrupoles |
| Superalloys | Nb in Ni-based superalloys (Inconel 718) | Jet-engine disks, gas-turbine combustors. Inconel 718 contains ~5% Nb. |
| Capacitors & medical | Nb capacitors (Ta substitute), Nb implants | Tantalum-substitute electrolytic capacitors; Nb is biocompatible (orthopaedic implants) |
Market & Supply
Global mine production
~83,000 t Nb/year [3]
Brazil share
~88%
Other producers
Canada (Niobec), DRC, Russia
Dominant supplier
CBMM (Brazil), ~75% global
Export control
Not on MOFCOM list
Ferroniobium FOB
$40 to $48/kg Nb (Argus)
Nb2O5 retail
$70 to $200/kg
Nb metal retail
$180 to $1,200/kg
Verified Offers
Niobium is the rare strategic material where China is not the dominant producer. Brazil’s CBMM at the Araxá deposit accounts for roughly three-quarters of global supply. The auto-rendered table shows tracked retail listings.
| Purity | MOQ | Original | Source | Verification | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-04-04 | Metal | High purity | 0.1 kg | 0.1 kg | $351 | 351 USD/kg | marketplace listing | navycbmichael (eBay) | US | single source offer | 0.60 |
| 2026-04-04 | Metal | 99.9% (3N) | 100 kg | 100 kg | $70 | 70 USD/kg | marketplace listing | Tianjin Chengmai (Alibaba) | CN | single source offer | 0.60 |
| 2026-03-15 | Alloy | FeNb 65% | 1000 kg | 1000 kg | $73 | 73 USD/kg | market index | Fastmarkets / CBMM benchmark | n/a | cross referenced | 0.70 |
| 2026-03-15 | Metal | 99.9% (3N) | 0.1 kg | 0.01 kg | $1,500 | 1,500 USD/kg | distributor offer | Smart-Elements | AT | single source offer | 0.55 |
4 records · click a column to sort
Important Notes
Brazilian supply concentration
CBMM (Companhia Brasileira de Metalurgia e Mineração) accounts for ~75% of global Nb supply from a single deposit at Araxá, Minas Gerais. Single-asset risk is offset by Brazil’s alignment with Western steel buyers and CBMM’s long history of reliable delivery.
Pipeline steel demand floor
Nb is a structural input to high-strength low-alloy pipeline steels (X70, X80, X100). Major oil and gas pipeline projects underwrite long-run Nb demand independent of high-tech applications.
NbTi vs Nb3Sn fork
NbTi remains the workhorse of clinical MRI and dipole magnets up to ~10 T. Nb3Sn is required for higher-field magnets (>10 T) including ITER and the next generation of fusion experiments. Nb3Sn demand growth is structural to fusion programmes.
Physical Properties [1]
Z: 41 · Ar: 92.906 u · ρ: 8.57 g/cm3 · Tm: 2,477 °C · Tb: 4,744 °CCrystal: bcc · Config: [Kr]4d45s1 · Ox. states: -1 to +5
References
- Wolfram Alpha, “Niobium element.” wolframalpha.com.
- CBMM, “Niobium products and applications.” cbmm.com.
- United States Geological Survey, Mineral Commodity Summaries 2025: Niobium, January 2025.
Seen a sourced Niobium quote that is missing above?