Category: Mining
Days Later, The Chinese Embassy in Zimbabwe is Still Fuming Over Guardian Report
For the second day in a row, the Chinese embassy in Zimbabwe took to Twitter to push back, albeit indirectly, at The Guardian (UK) for a report that alleged Chinese mining company Jingding had forcibly evicted residents to make way for a new mine.
Brace Yourself, You’re Going to be Inundated With Pictures of Chinese Infrastructure in the DRC
Now that the contentious contract disputes between the DRC government and the major Chinese mining companies appear to be settling, at least for now, expect to see a torrent of paid media, tweets, and countless propaganda stories extolling the merits of China's infrastructure-for-resource deals. ...
The Social Media Managers Who Run Chinese Diplomatic Twitter Accounts in Africa Are Getting More Creative
The Chinese social media manager who runs the embassy Twitter account in Harare had a bit of fun playing on the word "Guardian" in their denunciation of a recent Guardian (UK) report that alleged forced evictions of residents in Zimbabwean mining zones managed by ...
Was a Chinese Mine in the DR Congo Looted After the President Paid a Visit? The Mining Minister Says No, But Video Says Otherwise
The DR Congo's Mining Minister Antoinette N'samba is trying to quell accusations that the Chinese-owned Anhui Mining Investment Company (SACIM) was ransacked by looters last week after she and President Félix Tshisekedi visited the facility in the central Kasai Oriental province. Soon after ...
Why This Photo May Indicate That China’s Mining Contracts Problem in the DR Congo Has Been Resolved
DR Congo President Félix Tshisekedi's office published a photo of a Christmas Eve meeting with Sun Ruiwen, president of China Molybdenum (aka "China Moly.") The company controls the massive Tenke Fungurume cobalt and copper mine (TFM) in Lualaba province. Sun reportedly reassured President ...
Chinese Involvement in the “Congo Hold-Up” Corruption Scandal
19 media outlets together with five NGOs in the U.S. and Europe pored through 3.5 million leaked documents from a Gabonese bank to produce Congo Hold-Up, a landmark report that detailed breathtaking corruption in the DR Congo during ...
Tshisekedi Sacks Head of DRC’s State Mining Company Just Weeks After Release of Blockbuster Corruption Investigation
DR Congo President Félix Tshisekedi fired the powerful head of the country's state-run mining company Gécamines on Friday in an apparent effort to gain control of the narrative following last week's release of a damning international investigation that revealed widespread corruption at the firm.
The Governor in the Heart of DR Congo’s Mining Belt Wants to Put Aside Differences With the Chinese Company Sicomines
Fyfy Masuka, the powerful interim governor of the DR Congo's cobalt-rich Lualaba province, wants to ease tensions with the Chinese-run mining company Sicomines. Masuka met with Senate Speaker Modeste Bahati Lukwebo and representatives from Sicomines in Kinshasa. The meeting was an effort to try and resolve some of ...
Former U.S. Diplomat Peter Pham Draws China’s Ambassador to the DRC Into a Twitter Feud
Long time Twitter rivals J. Peter Pham, a U.S. diplomat during the Trump administration and a vocal critic of China in Africa, and China's ambassador to the DR Congo, Zhu Jing, squabbled again over the weekend after Pham tagged the ambassador personally in a critical post related ...
Cobalt Clarifies Everything
We’re at one of those moments when everyone suddenly remembers that Africa exists. Right through the pandemic, the debt crisis, and climate talks, the continent and its needs were seemingly invisible. But nothing sharpens the eye like an upcoming FOCAC summit. ...
Chinese Mining Companies Move Forward With Two Huge Deals Worth More Than a Billion Dollars in Ghana, DRC
The economic turmoil brought on by the ongoing pandemic has done nothing to stem the appetite of Chinese mining companies looking to expand their presence in Africa. This week alone, Chinese mining giants Zijin and Chifeng Jilong both received approval this week to proceed with deals that total ...
The U.S. President’s Son Involved in Controversy About a Chinese Mining Deal in the DR Congo
U.S. President Joe Biden's son, Hunter (photo), is once again at the center of a rapidly expanding controversy, this time about the sale of U.S. mining company Freeport-McMoRan's stake in the massive Tenke Fungurume copper and cobalt mine in the DR Congo to the Chinese mining giant China ...