MINING (185)
Kibali, the Democratic Republic of Congo’s largest gold mine, produced 191,000 ounces of gold in the third quarter of 2025, Barrick Mining said in its financial report released on November 10. That’s a 21% increase from the 159,000 ounces recorded in the same period of 2024.
Barrick attributed the improvement to the ramp-up of open-pit operations at the Kibali mining complex, where extracted ore volumes rose by 133% during the quarter. The increase offset a decline in underground mine output.
From January to September 2025, total production reached 498,000 ounces, slightly below the 509,000 ounces recorded over the same period last year. To meet its annual target of between 688,000 and 755,000 ounces, Kibali will need to produce between 190,000 and 257,000 ounces in the fourth quarter. That would require an additional rise of at least 19.5%, following the 21% increase already achieved in the third quarter.
Such performance would benefit the Congolese state, which owns 10% of the mine through the state company SOKIMO and collects various taxes and other statutory fees in addition to dividends. These include a 30% corporate profit tax, a 3.5% mining royalty on gross sales, and a 0.3% local development contribution based on turnover.
A persistent challenge, however, is improving the valuation of the gold sold. Official data show that in 2024, artisanal cooperatives exported their gold at an average price of $72,873.9 per ton, compared with $53,542.4 per ton for Kibali, a difference of $19,331 per ton. This discrepancy is hard to explain, given that Kibali uses advanced technology and expertise that should, in principle, secure higher international market prices.
Pierre Mukoko
M23 rebels are trying to restart gold mining operations at the Twangiza gold site, operated by China’s Twangiza Mining in South Kivu province. The move follows a series of airstrikes by the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (FARDC) targeting the mine’s power facilities to disrupt the rebels’ illegal gold operations.
According to local outlet Tazama RDC, the Rwanda-backed rebels have been working since last week to resume gold extraction at the site, which they have controlled since May 2025. Several local sources say a new fuel storage tank has been delivered to replace one destroyed in the FARDC strikes. A backup generator that survived the October bombings is also being reactivated to restore power and allow for a partial restart of production.
Internal sources at Twangiza Mining estimate total losses since the occupation at nearly $75 million, including more than 500 kilograms of looted gold and extensive damage to or theft of equipment. The site’s profitability makes Twangiza one of M23’s key revenue sources, underscoring the group’s push to resume mining despite repeated army attacks.
In October, Reuters reported that the rebels were receiving assistance from Rwandan technicians to operate the mine and expand the extraction zone. That expansion reportedly involved forcing residents from their homes and destroying several nearby churches. The situation reflects M23’s strategy to build an economic base in areas under its control, even as military and diplomatic efforts continue to end the conflict.
Timothée Manoke
The World Bank expects tin prices to rise by around 10% in 2025, followed by further gains of 3% in 2026 and 1.5% in 2027.
In its October 2025 Commodity Markets Outlook, the institution forecasts that prices will climb from $30,066 per ton in 2024 to $33,000 in 2025, $34,000 in 2026, and $34,500 in 2027. The outlook for the first two years was revised upward by $2,000 and $2,500, respectively, from the April 2025 projections.
The Bank attributes the rise to persistent tightness in global supply. “The global tin market is likely to remain tight, given the limited pipeline of new projects and continued vulnerability to geopolitical and operational disruptions,” the World Bank said.
Prices are expected to keep increasing despite a partial recovery in supply, particularly in Indonesia, where export license delays have been resolved, and in Myanmar, where several mines idled since 2023 have resumed production. Global demand is set to stay strong, supported by rising output of semiconductors, solar panels, and other energy-transition technologies.
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), one of Africa’s leading tin producers, is closely watching these developments. In 2024, the country exported 42,953 tons of tin concentrate, according to official data. Most exports came from Alphamin, operator of the Bisie mine (26,932 tons), with the rest (15,853 tons) from artisanal miners.
Price Gap Limits DRC Revenue
The DRC is benefiting little from the price rally due to the lack of local refining capacity. The World Bank’s benchmark prices refer to refined tin, while the DRC exports only concentrate. This gap limits value addition, reduces earnings for artisanal miners, and cuts tax revenue for both central and provincial governments.
In 2024, Alphamin’s 26,932 tons of concentrate exports were valued at $348.6 million, or roughly $12,946 per ton. By comparison, the 17,865 tons of refined metal derived from that output were sold for $542 million, averaging more than $30,300 per ton, according to company data. The difference highlights the significant fiscal losses faced by the state, which collects royalties on concentrate rather than on refined metal.
Congolese tin exports could decline in 2025 amid a worsening security situation in the east of the country, the main production area. Facing the advance of AFC/M23 rebels, Alphamin suspended operations in March before resuming mid-April but later revised its annual forecast downward. The company now expects to produce 18,500 tons in 2025, compared with an initial target of 20,000 tons.
The ongoing conflict is also likely to cut into artisanal exports through formal channels. A 2022 Global Witness report estimated that about 90% of 3T minerals (tantalum, tin, and tungsten) exported by Rwanda were already being sourced illegally from the DRC.
Pierre Mukoko
The copper and cobalt sites of the Chinese company Congo Dongfang Mining (CDM) in Lubumbashi have been suspended. The measure, announced on November 6, 2025, by the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Minister of Mines, Louis Watum Kabamba, will last an initial three months.
It targets the company’s operations following a major industrial pollution incident that affected several neighborhoods across the city.
During the suspension period, which may be extended, the copper and cobalt producer is required to continue paying all site staff in full, the minister said. CDM must also repair the environmental damage, compensate affected residents, and pay fines provided for in the Mining Code and applicable regulations.
Local media reported that contaminated water began leaking from CDM’s facilities in the Kasapa area of the Annexe commune, north of Lubumbashi, as early as Monday, November 3. The situation worsened sharply on November 4, when large volumes of water from the company’s retention pond spilled into surrounding areas, flooding in particular the Moïse market, which serves much of the city’s north.
Retention ponds are industrial basins designed to store and neutralize liquid effluents from mineral processing before discharge into the environment. A breach can release acidic, heavy metal-laden effluents that severely contaminate soil, homes, and waterways.
Eyewitnesses reported residents suffering skin burns after contact with the water, while viral images on social media showed dead domestic animals and fish floating in polluted streams, including the Lubumbashi River.
Minister Watum rushed to Lubumbashi on the night of November 5-6 to assess the situation. Onsite, CDM officials attributed the leak to a falling stone that they said damaged the pond’s impermeable lining and caused the toxic discharge.
The explanation failed to convince the minister, who posted on his X (formerly Twitter) account that the company’s discharge pond “does not meet any environmental standards, lacking an impermeable lining, structural stability, control mechanisms, or an emergency plan.”
Local media said the company took emergency measures to contain the pollution, including building a lime barrier to neutralize acidic water and using a pump to divert contaminated liquid into an old basin.
This is not the first incident involving CDM. Residents previously accused the company in 2022 of dumping polluted water into sewage systems and releasing toxic fumes from its operations.
The latest episode has reignited debate over the environmental accountability of mining companies in the DRC and the capacity of authorities to enforce strict standards in a sector often criticized for practices that endanger communities and ecosystems.
Timothée Manoke
The Democratic Republic of Congo's Ministry of Mines revoked the mining rights of seven companies in late October 2025 as part of its policy to enforce stricter compliance in the sector. The revocations were issued for failure to pay annual surface rights fees.
According to a list published by the Mining Cadastre (CAMI) on Nov. 3, Geocore was the most affected entity, losing two separate mining titles. One of the titles, granted in 2021, covered five mining squares in the Nyunzu and Kongolo territories of Tanganyika province, authorizing the company to conduct exploration and prospecting for gold, cassiterite, coltan, and wolframite.
Another notable firm was Regal Maniema, which had its Research Permit No. 3279 revoked. The company had previously faced the threat of forfeiture for the same reason, following a similar procedure initiated in 2021 over unpaid fees for the 2019 financial year.
These forfeiture decisions are based on Article 289 of the DRC's 2018 Revised Mining Code. The code allows affected companies to appeal the decision before competent authorities within 30 days of notification and publication. If no appeal is filed, the forfeiture is formally registered with the Mining Cadastre and published in the official gazette.
Under the Mining Code, the payment of surface rights is the second main condition for maintaining the validity of a mining title, after providing proof of the effective start of exploration or exploitation work. These rights are due annually, calculated based on the perimeter area and the permit’s validity period. The fees range from $0.03 to $1.14 per hectare, payable in Congolese francs at the current exchange rate.
Timothée Manoke
Mercuria Energy Trading has signed a three-year deal to source copper from Eurasian Resources Group (ERG) operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The agreement, announced in a statement issued on October 30, 2025, includes a pre-financing facility of up to $100 million from Mercuria to ERG.
Details such as the loan’s interest rate, copper volumes, and pricing terms have not been disclosed. Off-take agreements of this kind are often viewed with suspicion by the Congolese government and state mining company Gécamines, which argue their interests are not always protected. Both are recipients of mining tax revenues and minority shareholders in several joint ventures, and have repeatedly demanded the right to market their production share directly.
The deal enables Mercuria to strengthen its supply from the DRC, following agreements reached in late 2024 and March 2025 to secure half of Gécamines’ copper entitlement from the Tenke Fungurume mine. Gécamines holds a 20% stake in TFM, which has annual production exceeding 450,000 tons.
ERG, 40% owned by the Kazakh state, is one of the DRC’s major copper producers. Through its subsidiaries Frontier and Metalkol, it sold 120,176 tons of copper in 2024, according to official data. Production could rise in the coming years, as ERG controls several other projects previously stalled by disputes with the government or Gécamines, including the Swanmines project, now set to resume after a settlement reached in September.
Mercuria said the financing aims to support the development of ERG’s operations in the DRC while strengthening the group’s trading portfolio and financial flexibility.
Founded in Geneva in 2004, Mercuria is one of the world’s leading commodities and energy trading firms. The DRC is “a region of growing strategic relevance,” said Kostas Bintas, the company’s Global Head of Metals and Minerals.
The DRC was the world’s second-largest copper producer in 2024, behind Chile, with output of 3.1 million tons. Demand for the metal continues to surge, fueled by the energy transition and artificial intelligence.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates that global copper supply could fall short by 40% by 2035, a looming deficit that has helped lift prices nearly 20% over the past year, with futures trading around $11,500 a tonne on the London Metal Exchange.
Pierre Mukoko & Ronsard Luabeya
Ivanhoe Mines said its Kamoa-Kakula copper complex in the Democratic Republic of Congo will start receiving 50 megawatts (MW) of power from the Inga II hydropower plant in November. The delivery marks a key step toward securing a stable energy supply for one of the world’s largest copper operations.
The energy will come from Turbine 5 at Inga II, which has a capacity of 178 MW and has been under rehabilitation since 2022 by Ivanhoe Mines Energy, a subsidiary of the company. Power deliveries will be phased: 50 MW in November 2025, 100 MW in the first quarter of 2026 and 150 MW in the first half of 2027, as grid upgrades are completed.
According to Ivanhoe’s third-quarter 2025 report, the mechanical and electrical refurbishment of Turbine 5 was completed during the quarter, marking a major milestone in the company’s energy investment program. The mine will receive increasing power volumes as ongoing grid reinforcement work progresses at the Inga (SCI) and Kolwezi (SCK) substations. These upgrades include installing resistors, harmonic filters and a static compensator to stabilize voltage and improve power quality to Kamoa-Kakula.
The modernization and grid stabilization program, launched in late 2024, is backed by $200 million in financing from Ivanhoe Mines and its joint-venture partner Zijin Mining.
By 2027, the Kamoa-Kakula complex could become self-sufficient in power, eliminating reliance on imported electricity from Zambia and Mozambique. This will be achieved through the combination of Inga II supply and two solar power plants under construction by CrossBoundary Energy DRC and Green World Energie SARL, each designed to deliver 30 MW.
The solar projects were 42 percent and 46 percent complete, respectively, as of the end of the third quarter, with commercial operations now expected in the second quarter of 2026, slightly ahead of schedule. Ivanhoe said long-lead equipment, including battery energy storage systems (BESS), inverters and mounting structures, has already been shipped and unloaded on site.
Timothée Manoke
Kamoa-Kakula, the Democratic Republic of Congo’s largest copper mine, generated $2.4 billion in revenue between January and September 2025, a 6.7 percent increase from the same period last year, according to the third-quarter report released on Oct. 29 by operator Ivanhoe Mines. The mine, one of the world’s biggest copper producers, recorded annual revenue of $3.1 billion in 2024.
The increase came despite a sharp third-quarter decline in sales. Revenue for July to September fell 31 percent year-on-year to $566.3 million from $827.8 million in 2024. Ivanhoe attributed the drop to a seismic event in May that disrupted part of the mine and led to a 38 percent fall in copper output to 71,226 tons from 116,313 tons.
Higher prices partially offset the production loss. The average realized copper price rose to $4.42 per pound, or about $9,700 per tonne, compared with $4.16 per pound a year earlier.
Despite the incident, Kamoa-Kakula expects to maintain full-year revenue of around $3 billion, similar to 2024. Copper output for the first nine months of 2025 totaled 316,393 tons, and Ivanhoe maintained its full-year production forecast of 370,000 to 420,000 tons. That implies output of 53,600 to 103,600 tons in the fourth quarter. Unsold copper inventories stood at roughly 59,000 tons at the end of September, which should help lift fourth-quarter sales.
Operating profitability, however, is set to decline. EBITDA represented 44.3 percent of revenue for the first nine months of 2025, down from 61 percent a year earlier.
Capital spending at Kamoa-Kakula reached $910 million through September, with full-year investment now projected between $1.3 billion and $1.5 billion,about $100 million lower than earlier estimates. Ivanhoe expects to invest between $410 million and $580 million in the final quarter.
Kamoa-Kakula is jointly owned by Canada’s Ivanhoe Mines and China’s Zijin Mining, which each hold 39.6 percent. The Congolese government owns 20 percent and Crystal River holds 0.8 percent.
Pierre Mukoko
Chinese mining giant CMOC Group Ltd reported cobalt sales of 6.2 billion yuan ($850 million) between January and September 2025, down just 7.8% year on year, despite a months-long suspension of exports from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The ban, in place from February 21 to October 15, affected all of CMOC’s cobalt operations, including its flagship Tenke Fungurume and Kisanfu mines.
The embargo cut cobalt sales volumes by 36% to 51,027 tons, but higher global prices offset much of the impact. CMOC said the average cobalt price rose to $16,730 per tonne, up 44% from a year earlier, helping stabilize revenue.
The company continued to fulfill supply contracts for four months before declaring force majeure on June 30. While CMOC did not specify the source of its shipments during the export halt, analysts believe the group relied on pre-existing stockpiles held outside the DRC, particularly in logistics hubs such as Durban (South Africa) and Walvis Bay (Namibia).
Production data support that assessment. CMOC produced 87,974 tons of cobalt in the first nine months of 2025, averaging under 10,000 tons per month, too little to explain sales levels given the export freeze that began in February.
CMOC’s profitability improved despite the disruption. The company’s gross margin on cobalt rose 27 points to 63.5%, while operating costs fell nearly 47% to just over 2 billion yuan. The company attributed the gain to greater energy efficiency, process optimization, and effective foreign exchange management.
Following the end of the embargo on October 16, the Congolese government introduced an export quota system, capping national cobalt shipments at 18,125 tons for the final quarter of 2025 and 96,600 tons for 2026. CMOC received allocations of 6,500 tons for 2025 and 31,200 tons for 2026.
The new system is expected to keep global cobalt prices elevated, with the metal trading above $45,000 per tonne on the London Metal Exchange, more than double its level when the ban began. However, it also restricts CMOC’s ability to manage its offshore inventories.
Executives at the company have recently described the situation as difficult to sustain, signaling growing pressure on supply flexibility despite the group’s strong margins.
Pierre Mukoko
Chinese mining group CMOC announced it has received board approval to proceed with a $1 billion expansion project at its Kisanfu mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), according to the company’s third-quarter financial report published on October 24, 2025.
The development is expected to take two years, with commissioning scheduled for late 2027.
Once operational, the project will boost Kisanfu's copper production capacity by 100,000 tons, bringing the total annual output to more than 250,000 tons. When combined with the Tenke Fungurume mine’s capacity of over 450,000 tons, CMOC’s total copper production in the DRC is set to exceed 700,000 tons per year.
This substantial investment aligns with a favorable market outlook for the red metal. Global copper demand is projected to rise due to the accelerated pace of the energy transition and the boom in artificial intelligence. The International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates that supply from current mining projects will be insufficient to meet future demand, forecasting a copper supply deficit of up to 40% by 2035. This prospect guarantees sustained price appreciation for the metal.
All of CMOC's current copper production originates from the DRC. For the first nine months of 2025, the group reported producing 543,376 tons, marking a 14.1% increase from the same period in 2024. Over the same nine months, sales volume rose 10.5% year-on-year to 510,312 tons.
These sales generated revenue of 38.6 billion yuan (approximately $5.3 billion at the average exchange rate), a 25.6% increase from a year earlier, with an average realized price of $10,409 per ton.
However, these strong commercial results were largely offset by a 21% surge in operational costs, which climbed to 17.7 billion yuan ($2.4 billion). Consequently, the company’s gross profit margin only increased by 1.7%, settling at 20.9 billion yuan ($2.8 billion). This outcome suggests that the corporate tax revenue received by the Congolese state may see little to no increase.
Pierre Mukoko
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Chinese miner CMOC Group Ltd produced 87,974 tons of cobalt in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) between January and September 2025, up 3% from the same period a year earlier, the company said in an operational report on Oct. 24.
The combined output from its Kisanfu and Tenke Fungurume mines keeps the company on track to meet its 2025 target of between 100,000 and 120,000 tons, compared with 114,200 tons in 2024.
Most of this year’s production, however, cannot be exported. The DRC , the world’s largest cobalt producer , imposed an export embargo on Feb. 21, 2025, later replaced on Oct. 16 by a quota system that limits CMOC to shipping 6,500 tons in the final quarter of the year.
For 2026, the company will be allowed to export 31,200 tons, based on December 2025’s authorized volume being maintained each month, unless regulations are breached. Over the two-year period, CMOC’s cumulative exports will be capped at 37,700 tons, less than half its output for the first nine months of 2025. Executives have described the situation as “barely tolerable.”
The quota regime is expected to remain in place until at least 2027. A total of 18,125 tons was approved for 2025, and the combined authorized export volume is projected to reach 96,600 tons for 2026 and 2027. The strategic minerals regulator ARECOMS may adjust these quotas depending on market conditions.
Kinshasa hopes the new rules will lift cobalt prices and encourage miners to invest in local refining and value-added production. Unofficial reports suggest the government is targeting a floor price of $60,000 per tonne, about triple the level recorded in February 2025, when the embargo took effect.
Cobalt currently trades at around $45,000 per tonne on the London Metal Exchange. Prices are expected to rise as the DRC, which accounted for nearly 75% of global supply in 2024, curbs exports. Global demand is forecast to increase by 4% in 2025 and 6% in 2026, according to the Cobalt Institute.
Pierre Mukoko
The DRC army's aviation carried out new strikes on the Twangiza Mining gold processing plant in Mwenga territory, South Kivu, during the night of Oct. 22-23, 2025, according to local media reports. The site, located about 40 kilometers southwest of Bukavu, has been occupied by the M23 rebel group since early May 2025, forcing the company to declare force majeure.
Twangiza Mining told Reuters that it has lost over 100 kilograms of gold per month since the takeover, in addition to equipment and material valued at an estimated $5 million. The company did not specify whether the damage was due to theft, destruction, or abandonment. The approximately 500 kilograms of gold lost to date represents about $70 million at current market prices, bringing the total estimated loss to around $75 million.
The strikes overnight into Oct. 23 were the third aerial operation against the facilities held by the rebels. Previous attacks a week earlier had already damaged the electrical infrastructure supplying the plant. Local sources indicate the latest shelling targeted fuel tanks and backup generators, including those already out of service, in a bid to hinder the M23's alleged illegal gold processing activities.
Sources familiar with the operation said the Twangiza Mining plant has a production capacity of over 300 kilograms of gold per month. However, the company has not appeared in official industrial production statistics since 2021. This prolonged absence raises questions now that the firm claims to have lost over 100 kilograms of gold monthly since the site fell under rebel control.
In 2020, Canadian company Banro, which had operated the Twangiza gold mine since 2012, announced it had sold its stake to minority shareholder Baiyin International Investments for a symbolic franc. Local media reported that Baiyin subsequently transferred the site to the Chinese company Ultrawell.
Timothée Manoke
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with U.S.-based Hydro-Link LLC to build a 1,150-kilometer transmission line that will import 1.2 gigawatts (GW) of electricity from Angola.
The deal, worth an estimated $1.5 billion, was signed on October 14, 2025, during the DRC-U.S. Economic Forum in Washington by DRC Minister of Hydraulic Resources and Electricity Aimé Molendo Sakombi and Hydro-Link CEO Paul Hinks.
This agreement completes a series of preliminary MoUs required to advance the project. Hydro-Link first signed an initial framework with its partner Mitrelli at the 17th U.S.-Africa Business Summit held by the Corporate Council on Africa in Luanda on June 22, followed by accords with Angola and the DRC.
The transmission line is slated for commissioning in 2029, though several steps remain before construction begins, including licensing and financing. Hydro-Link plans to seek a loan from the U.S. Development Finance Corporation (DFC) to fund about 70% of the cost, with additional support from the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) for feasibility studies and U.S. Exim Bank export credits.
In the DRC, the energy shortfall for mining operators is estimated at 1,500 MW, according to the Ministry of Mines. The new line will carry electricity generated mainly at Angola’s Lauca hydropower plant to the Kolwezi mining zone in Haut-Katanga, where major producers such as Glencore and Ivanhoe Mines operate.
The African Development Bank (AfDB) estimates that Angola currently has 1.5 GW of surplus clean hydropower capacity, projected to reach 3.5 GW by 2027. The Hydro-Link initiative is the third project aimed at transmitting this excess power to Congo’s mining centers, alongside efforts by Morocco’s Somagec and a consortium led by Trafigura and ProMarks.
“With the rapid growth of the mining sector, we anticipate a complete transformation of Congo’s energy supply over the next decade,” said Paul Hinks, CEO of Hydro-Link and founder of New York-based Symbion Power.
Kinshasa and Washington are also exploring a “minerals-for-security” partnership intended to encourage U.S. investment in the DRC. Following the MoU signing, Minister Sakombi said, “I welcome this partnership and invite American investors to follow suit.”
Ronsard Luabeya
• Belgium Innovation Company (Belinco) will conduct a three-month gold exploration mission in Luiza, Kasai Central, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
• The company plans to train local teams and may invest further if results confirm significant mineral potential.
• Belinco, active in the DRC for over 15 years, previously partnered with Hazina Investments SAS on feasibility studies for Leta Mbanvu Mining Company in Luiza.
Belgium Innovation Company (Belinco) plans to start a gold exploration mission in Luiza, located in the Kasai Central province of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
The announcement came from Sahel Tshibangu, head of the Cooperative of Artisanal and Agricultural Miners of Luiza (CEMIAL), who led a company delegation to meet the acting provincial governor, Job Kuyindama, on October 3, 2024.
Tshibangu said the initiative is based on previous geological studies conducted in the area. The three-month mission aims to identify gold reserves and assess other exploitable mineral resources across the Luiza territory.
Representatives of Belinco also plan to strengthen the technical capacity of local teams to support the exploration process. If results prove promising, the company will expand its investment to the production stage, subject to official provincial approval.
Belinco, which has operated in the DRC for over 15 years, specializes in mining exploration and extraction. The company’s headquarters are in Kinshasa, and it is led by mining expert Joseph Olcauz.
In 2023, Belinco partnered with Hazina Investments SAS to conduct research and a feasibility study for Leta Mbanvu Mining Company, which holds mining rights in Luiza.
The upcoming mission marks a new phase of mineral development in Kasai Central, a province increasingly attracting junior and mid-tier mining investors seeking to tap underexplored gold deposits in central DRC.
This article was initially published in French by Ronsard Luabeya
Adapted in English by Ange Jason Quenum