On April 14, 2025, Katamba Mining, 70% owned by China’s Zijin Mining, launched a tender to hire a subcontractor to build and operate a crushing plant. The facility will produce gravel and sand for the Mpiana-Mwanga III hydroelectric project, located over 90 km northeast of Manono in Tanganyika province. Interested companies have until April 22 to submit bids.

The hired company will set up temporary infrastructure, build a production system, mobilize equipment and personnel, site logistics, transport materials, ensure waste disposal, produce technical reports, and carry out maintenance works.

This project follows the recent rehabilitation of the first two phases of the nearly century-old plant, idle since 1998. Katamba Mining invested $80 million to restore the facility and boost its capacity by 30%, raising it to 40 MW as announced in December 2024. However, during a March 2025 site visit, MP John Banza Lunda noted that only the first unit is operational, delivering 4 MW.

Details remain sparse, but last January, Katamba’s second-largest shareholder, Congolaise d’Exploitation Minière (Cominière), estimated the new plant’s capacity at around 150 MW, with the entire complex eventually nearing 200 MW.

Powering Manono Mine

According to the recently launched tender, work on the crushing plant is scheduled from May 1, 2025, to January 31, 2027. “Recommissioning Mpiana-Mwanga as a renewable energy source secures power for Manono mine, local processing plants, and communities,” said Zijin Mining VP James Wang at the end of the rehabilitation works.

The power upgrade supports Manono, home to one of the world’s largest high-grade lithium deposits. Zijin aims to start production in Q1 2026.

Rehabilitation of Mpiana-Mwanga was part of a feasibility study by AVZ Minerals, Cominière’s former partner until 2022. The joint venture, controlled by the Australian company, was close to securing a mining permit when disputes escalated. AVZ is now contesting the matter before the International Court of Arbitration.

This article was initially published in French by Pierre Mukoko and Ronsard Luabeya (intern)

Edited in English by Ola Schad Akinocho

As of April 16, 2025, Société Minière de Bakwanga (MIBA) has yet to resume diamond mining. The state-owned giant has been absent from production reports since mid-2024, putting at risk the ambitious targets announced last November by MIBA Chairman Jean-Charles Okoto.

“We want to produce one million carats per month in 2025,” Okoto told Belgian daily L’Écho, aiming for 12 million carats annually. This target is bold, given that the DRC produced 8.34 million carats last year, down from 10.78 million in 2022.

Okoto, appointed in November 2023, traveled to Europe in late 2024 seeking “new partners” to revive MIBA, which has struggled for over two decades. ASA Resource, which holds a 20% stake in the state-owned firm, pledged $50 million for the revival. 

Meanwhile, the DRC government, which owns 80%, approved a $70 million minimum recovery plan in August 2024. Last December, President Félix Tshisekedi announced that $50 million would be allocated for MIBA’s restart.

Yet, funds remain elusive. A report from the Kasaï Oriental governor’s office on April 8 reveals that the $50 million promised by the President has not yet been released. It’s also unclear if ASA Resource has fulfilled its contribution. The status of the recovery plan’s implementation remains undisclosed.

The $70 million plan, more modest than Okoto’s goals, targets 2.5 million carats by 2026. It calls for urgent debt restructuring, reducing liabilities, and convening an extraordinary shareholders' meeting.

MIBA’s Managing Director, André Kabanda Kana, has identified four South African companies—Bond Equipment, Mining Services, Athur Mining, and Consulmet—interested in supplying modern equipment to restart operations. These firms toured mining sites and should soon submit bids.

Rehabilitating the Lubilanji hydroelectric plant is also critical to resume production. Czech firm Seko, contracted a year ago for the project, announced on March 24 that work would start “shortly.”

Though a restart is still far off, local expectations run high. The Kasaï Oriental governorate calls MIBA’s revival “the wish of more than one Kasaïen.” Officials estimate that renewed operations could create up to 2,500 jobs.

Looking ahead, MIBA plans to diversify into gold, nickel, and chromium mining and expand into other provinces of the Greater Kasai region.

This article was initially published in French by Pierre Mukoko and Ronsard Luabeya (intern)

Edited in English by Ola Schad Akinocho

Jean-Jacques Purusi Sadiki, Governor of South Kivu, revealed that at least 1,600 companies are illegally mining resources in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). He made this statement before the French National Assembly's Foreign Affairs Committee on April 2, 2025, during a hearing on the region's security and economic situation.

Upon taking office in June 2024, Sadiki initiated a mining sector overhaul. A month later, he issued an order suspending mining activities to identify companies operating illegally. "We expected 400 companies, but 1,600 showed up—some having operated for 8 to 10 years without permits, taxes, or registration," he said.

These companies, mostly Chinese-owned, are part of a broader network illicitly exploiting gold, coltan, cassiterite, copper, and diamonds. Sadiki and UN experts believe this network benefits Rwanda, which acts as a gateway for multinationals due to its superior infrastructure and supply chain. This allows them to bypass the DRC's disorganized market to access its minerals through the neighboring country.

Economic War

Governor Sadiki alleged that 750,000 kg of gold are smuggled out every six months for refining in Rwanda, "which has set up refineries right on the border." The EU sanctioned Rwanda's Gasabo Gold Refinery on March 17, 2025, for processing illegally mined gold from the DRC, though Kigali denies involvement without providing mineral origin proof.

The official added that most of this illicit gold is exported to the Middle East—67% goes to Dubai, UAE, and Saudi Arabia—while less than 2% reaches Europe. The rest heads to China. 

Purusi Sadiki argues that the conflict in eastern DRC is economically driven, with Rwanda seeking land control, commercial dominance, and mineral monopolization. He notes that “M23 rebels, backed by Rwanda, align their progress with mining site locations.”

Rwanda countered, stating it only took defensive actions to “protect its sovereignty and territorial integrity” against the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), which it sees as an “existential threat” following their refuge in the DRC since the 1994 genocide.

Internal Struggles 

To address ongoing tensions, Governor Jean-Jacques Purusi Sadiki advocates for a "mining for peace, security, and development" deal. This would involve integrating more European and American companies into the DRC's mineral exploitation, hoping their presence could deter armed groups and stabilize the region.

President Félix-Antoine Tshisekedi and Sadiki both believe that Western interests can help restore order. Currently, Kinshasa is negotiating a mineral agreement with Washington.

However, the governor's early tenure in South Kivu highlights the DRC's internal challenges. Corruption and an overly complex tax system—featuring over 1,400 taxes, including 147 deemed unnecessary—pose significant obstacles. Despite these hurdles, Sadiki claims to have boosted the province's mining revenues from $500,000 to $1.75 million after just one month of reforms.

This article was initially published in French by Georges Auréole Bamba

Edited in English by Ola Schad Akinocho

China Molybdenum Company (CMOC) produced 30,414 tonnes of cobalt in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in Q1 2025. Year-on-year, the Chinese group’s output grew 20%, according to a report, dated April 8, relayed by Reuters. 

Despite the Congolese government’s recent suspension of cobalt exports, CMOC has maintained its production levels and forecasts for 2025, expecting between 100,000 and 120,000 tonnes of cobalt. CMOC did not justify its decision.

However, the move reflects the strategic nature of cobalt as a by-product of copper mining at CMOC’s Tenke Fungurume and Kisanfu mines. Interrupting cobalt production would affect copper output, which remains profitable due to relatively stable prices. In Q1 2025, CMOC’s copper production increased by 15.7%.

Launched in February, the suspension is in place for four months, which means CMOC could resume exports later in the year. Since the ban, cobalt prices on the London Metal Exchange have risen from around $21,000 to $33,000 per tonne, a 57% increase, supporting the government's strategy to boost prices and earn more from the cobalt mining.

" This level, the highest since May 2023, validates the approach adopted by the government and makes it possible to envisage, in the short term, a significant recovery in contributions to state revenues from the exploitation of this resource," the Congolese government stated at the end of the Council of Ministers meeting on April 4.

However, there are no guarantees that CMOC will fully benefit from this price upturn, as the ban could be extended. Moreover, when exports resume, a potential influx of cobalt could pressure prices downward. In response, the DRC is considering export quotas to maintain market equilibrium, though specific details have not been disclosed.

This article was initially published in French by Emiliano Tossou (Ecofin Agency)

Edited in English by Ola Schad Akinocho