US Backs 2 DRC Mines Targeting 20,000 Tons of Cobalt to Challenge China
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Jun 23
US Backs 2 DRC Mines Targeting 20,000 Tons of Cobalt to Challenge China
3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jun 23
Summary
Virtus Minerals, backed by the Trump administration, is developing two Chemaf cobalt and copper mines in the DRC in what it calls the first U.S.-owned mining operation there in more than a decade.
The Étoile and Mutoshi sites are planned to produce 20,000 tonnes of cobalt and 75,000 tonnes of copper annually, with processing plants due to come online next year.
Washington is framing the project as a supply-chain play against China, which controls about 80% of DRC cobalt output in a country that produces roughly 80% of the world’s cobalt.
The minerals are set to move west through the Lobito Corridor to Angola, a rail route the U.S. has backed with a $5 billion commitment to build auditable supply chains for the U.S. and allies.
The investment follows Trump’s December Washington Accord with the DRC and Rwanda, which paired minerals cooperation with a push to ease regional conflict that has still persisted in eastern Congo.