DRC pitches manganese, copper, cobalt, lithium to US: project economics lens for engineers
Reviewed by Joe Ashwell
First reported on MINING.com
30 Second Briefing
The Democratic Republic of Congo has delivered Washington a vetted shortlist of mining and processing assets for US investment, including Kisenge manganese and cassiterite licences, Gecamines’ Mutoshi copper‑cobalt project, Cominiere lithium permits and Sakima coltan, gold and wolframite operations, under a Dec. 4 accord granting US firms privileged access to its copper, cobalt, lithium and tantalum. The move directly challenges Chinese operators CMOC, Zijin and Huayou, which control about 80% of Congo’s output including Tenke Fungurume, the world’s second‑largest cobalt source. BMO analysts warn that how and when the US releases its recently built copper, platinum and palladium inventories—potentially to Cold War‑scale levels—has become the key variable for metals prices and project economics.
Technical Brief
- Kisenge package combines manganese, gold and cassiterite licences, implying multi-commodity pit and plant configurations.
- Sakima’s assets span coltan, gold and wolframite, indicating mixed hard‑rock and alluvial processing flowsheets.
- Congolese officials say the candidate list underwent several internal vetting rounds before submission to Washington.
- BMO notes Trump’s second term has already produced the largest US copper stock build, then platinum and palladium.
- Analysts warn US metals inventories could grow towards Cold War‑era tonnages, materially altering long‑term price decks.
Our Take
With around 80% of Congo’s mining output already controlled by Chinese firms such as CMOC, Zijin and Huayou, any new US-linked funding over the $1 billion mark is more likely to influence future allocations of licences like Cominiere’s lithium or Kisenge’s manganese than to displace entrenched positions at existing assets such as Tenke Fungurume.
The long-dated tax breaks running to 2040 for Chinese miners in the DRC effectively lock in a lower cost base for those operators, meaning US-backed entrants into copper, cobalt and manganese will probably need to compete via infrastructure, processing technology or offtake security rather than headline fiscal terms alone.
Trafigura’s appearance both in this DRC critical minerals context and in our coverage of copper concentrate offtake from Anglo Asian’s Demirli mine suggests traders will remain pivotal intermediaries for any US–DRC supply chain, especially where Washington wants to secure copper and cobalt units without directly operating mines.
Prepared by collating external sources, AI-assisted tools, and Geomechanics.io’s proprietary mining database, then reviewed for technical accuracy & edited by our geotechnical team.
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