Glencore is reshaping its operating strategy in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as export restrictions on cobalt give way to a quota system expected to remain in place at least until the end of 2027. In its 2025 production report, published on January 29, 2026, the Anglo-Swiss mining group said it is prioritizing copper while adapting cobalt management to tighter commercial and logistical constraints.
Under this approach, “cobalt contained in mixed ores can be kept in solution (and not counted as production), rather than being processed into cobalt hydroxide, in order to minimize nearby processing costs,” the group said. Glencore operates the Kamoto Copper Company (KCC) and Mutanda Mining (MUMI) assets in the DRC.
In practice, this means the company is no longer systematically producing cobalt in a marketable form when export outlets are limited. The rationale is economic: avoiding processing, logistics, and storage costs for volumes that cannot be exported immediately.
2025 figures confirm the shift
Copper production in the DRC will be prioritized over cobalt when commercially appropriate, Glencore said; a stance supported by strong price dynamics for the red metal.
After approaching $13,000 per ton in 2025, up 44%, copper prices for three-month delivery hit a new record on January 29, 2026, reaching $14,268 per ton on the London Metal Exchange, Reuters reported.
This positioning is reflected in Glencore’s 2025 figures. Copper production from its own DRC operations, KCC and MUMI, reached 247,800 tons, up 10% from 2024.
By contrast, cobalt production declined. Glencore reported output of 36,100 tons in 2025, down from 38,200 tons in 2024, a 5% drop. The decrease “primarily reflects proactive planning to prioritize copper production over cobalt, given cobalt export restrictions in the DRC,” the group said.
Limited visibility for 2026
For 2026, Glencore provided a global copper production range of between 810,000 and 870,000 tons but declined to issue any forecast for cobalt.
“Given the dynamic context of cobalt export restrictions and the need for ongoing operational optimization, current uncertainty is too high to provide reliable cobalt production guidance for the 2026 financial year,” the company said.
Glencore added, however, that KCC and Mutanda hold sufficient cobalt inventories to meet short-term quota requirements. Expected quotas for the group are estimated at 22,765 tons in 2026, including carryover from 2025, and 18,840 tons in 2027.
Impact on the local value chain
The strategy is expected to have knock-on effects across the Congolese mining ecosystem. On the logistics side, Glencore said the DRC is “progressively putting in place its quota and control systems,” but delays affected exports initially planned for the fourth quarter of 2025. As a result, “KCC and Mutanda exported no cobalt in the fourth quarter of 2025.”
Storage has become a central issue. Excess cobalt is being held within the DRC, increasing the need for secure warehousing, traceability, and risk management, while tying up financial value.
The impact on employment and subcontracting is more mixed. Prioritizing copper helps maintain high activity levels at mines and processing plants. However, lower volumes of marketable cobalt and periods without exports weigh on cobalt-linked segments, including export logistics, packaging, specialized transport, and related services.
From an operational risk perspective, keeping cobalt “in solution” alters industrial processes and requires heightened attention to safety, environmental management, and maintenance.
Pierre Mukoko
