Congo Allows Export of Cobalt, Tin, Tungsten, and Tantalum

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) recently announced that it will exempt indefinitely the export ban on cobalt (Co) hydroxide and Co carbonate, as well as tin, tungsten, and tantalum concentrate, which is defined as "conflict minerals", after a meeting with the country's largest mining company, according to the foreign report.

"Conflict minerals," as defined by the US legislation, currently include the metals tantalum, tin, tungsten, and gold, which are the derivatives of the minerals cassiterite, columbite-tantalite, and wolframite, respectively. Downstream companies often refer to the derivatives of these minerals as 3TG.

In addition, the Ministry of Mines of the Democratic Republic of Congo also announced an exemption for copper concentrate exports, but the deadline has not been determined. Mining companies need to submit proposals within a week from the announcement.

The DRC is the world's largest cobalt producer and Africa's largest copper producer. In order to encourage mining companies to process and refine ore domestically, the country has banned the export of copper and Co concentrates since 2013.

However, due to insufficient domestic smelting capacity, DRC had to implement an export ban exemptions time and time again. The announcement of the Ministry of Mines stated that "After a long debate, Professor Willy Kitobo Samsoni, Minister of Mines, decided to exempt the export ban on Co hydroxide and Co carbonate, tin, tungsten, and tantalum concentrate."

Alphamin, which operates a tin mine in the northern Democratic Republic of Congo, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

This decision is an aid to mining companies, including DRC cobalt, copper, and tin mining companies, Zambian companies importing copper from DRC for processing, and Chinese companies importing cobalt ore for processing.

In January, China Nonferrous Mining Group started production at the Lualaba Copper Smelter (LCS) in DRC. It can process 400,000 tons of copper concentrate and produce 120,000 tons of blister copper. This is the country's first large copper smelter.

However, even if LCS produces at full capacity, it cannot handle all the copper concentrates in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Data from the central bank of the country showed that copper production in the first half of the year was 765,000 tons, an increase of 13.4% year-on-year.

The Ministry of Mines requires that copper mining companies whose copper concentrates are not compatible with LCS production should build their smelters as soon as possible. The Ministry revealed that all copper mining companies participating in the meeting recognized the importance of on-site processing.

In the first half of 2020, the output of Co in the Democratic Republic of Congo was 38,816 tons, a year-on-year increase of 6%. However, the production of tin, tungsten, and tantalum declined. Glencore, the largest cobalt producer in DRC, also did not respond to the decision.

• < Prev
• Next >