DRC Prime Minister to Intervene in Cobalt Dispute

Aerial view of the Tenke Fungurume mine in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, one of the country's largest cobalt and copper mines that is now at the center of a bitter dispute among its owners.

Jean-Michel Sama Lukonde, the Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo, will host new negotiations between the state mining company Gecamines and the giant Chinese cobalt miner China Molybdenum (CMOC). 

The intervention is aimed at breaking the deadlock between the two, due to allegations that CMOC undercounted reserves and owes Gecamines mining royalties. In February, a court temporarily stripped control of Tenke Fungurume, one of the world’s largest cobalt mines, from CMOC, and appointed a special administrator to oversee operations. 

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by Cobus van Staden

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