A battle is playing out over Congolese cobalt. China is well ahead
The US and China are engaged in a fierce competition for critical minerals, particularly in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), largely due to the US having previously sold two major cobalt mines to China. These mines, Tenke Fungurume and Kisanfu, were sold by American mining giant Freeport-McMoRan to CMOC Group (formerly China Molybdenum) in 2016 and 2020, respectively, significantly boosting China's cobalt supply.
The DRC is the world's leading source of cobalt, accounting for approximately 70% of global production, a crucial mineral for manufacturing batteries used in electric vehicles and phones. These acquisitions allowed CMOC to become the world's largest cobalt producer by 2023, highlighting the strategic importance of the DRC in the global race for critical minerals and raising concerns about US access to these vital resources.
via SCMP Full Text Feed
The US and China are engaged in a fierce competition for critical minerals, particularly in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), largely due to the US having previously sold two major cobalt mines to China. These mines, Tenke Fungurume and Kisanfu, were sold by American mining giant Freeport-McMoRan to CMOC Group (formerly China Molybdenum) in 2016 and 2020, respectively, significantly boosting China's cobalt supply.
The DRC is the world's leading source of cobalt, accounting for approximately 70% of global production, a crucial mineral for manufacturing batteries used in electric vehicles and phones. These acquisitions allowed CMOC to become the world's largest cobalt producer by 2023, highlighting the strategic importance of the DRC in the global race for critical minerals and raising concerns about US access to these vital resources.
via SCMP Full Text Feed
