That is very positive news .Here ya go.....
Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos; Credit: Social Media
Gates and Bezos fight over Congo's lithium
KoBold Metals, a company backed by Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos, is proposing to develop one of the world's richest lithium sources, in an attempt to curb Chinese influence in Congo and resolve a tense dispute over the concession.
Avichai Tedassa | 21/03/2025 15:55
Topics in the articleBill Gates Jeff Bezos
KoBold Metals, backed by Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos, is moving into the Congo mining market with a clear goal: to develop one of the world’s largest hard lithium deposits. The company, which uses artificial intelligence to identify resources critical to the global energy transition, has submitted a proposal to the Congolese government to develop the Roche Dure deposit, a site at the center of a long-running legal dispute between Australian, Chinese and local companies. It is the first move by a major American mining company in the African country, and one that could change the global balance of power in the lithium market.
KoBold’s offer comes at a sensitive time, not only with lithium prices having fallen more than 80% since their peak in 2022, but also amid the rapid expansion of Chinese companies in Africa. China’s Zijin, for example, already holds rights to the northern part of the deposit and aims to open its first lithium mine in Congo in early 2026. At the same time, Australian company AVZ Minerals, which was close to starting construction on the entire area, lost its rights in 2023 after the government canceled the agreement and divided the license among several parties.
KoBold's proposal also includes a potential solution to the dispute - the American company offers to take over the southern part of the deposit, while Zijin will keep the northern part. In return, AVZ will receive financial compensation and give up its claims to the entire license. KoBold also wants the government to have a minority stake in the project, instead of the state-owned company Cominiere, which cooperated with AVZ until relations deteriorated.
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Who is KoBold Metals?
KoBold Metals is an American mining and technology company founded in 2018, working to locate and produce resources essential to the transition to renewable energy – primarily lithium, cobalt, copper, and nickel. The company focuses on developing artificial intelligence tools and unique algorithms that allow it to identify rare metal deposits in complex geographical areas, and is currently active in more than 70 sites around the world, including in Zambia, Canada, Australia, the US and Congo. KoBold enjoys the support of a number of prominent entities, led by Bill Gates' Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Jeff Bezos' Bezos Expeditions, and Michael Bloomberg's investment fund. Although Gates and Bezos have no direct involvement in the company's management, their funds are among the main investors. The company represents a growing trend of direct American involvement in the markets for critical raw materials for the battery and electric vehicle industries, in an attempt to reduce dependence on supplies from Chinese-controlled sources.
The talks are taking place alongside advanced talks between Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi and the Trump administration regarding a “minerals-for-security” agreement. Congo, which is rich in resources but plagued by internal conflicts, sees cooperation with Western players as a way to stabilize its economy and attract high-quality investment. KoBold is already operating in the region – it is developing a copper mine in neighboring Zambia and manages over 70 projects around the world. In this case, entering Congo could be a turning point – both in terms of developing one of the world’s most important sources of lithium, and as an American response to China’s growing presence in the new energy market. If it manages to reach an agreement with all the players involved and resolve the legal disputes, the company is expected to establish a significant foothold in one of the critical countries for the future of the electric vehicle industry.
Kobold Metals certainly has the financial backing to offer a fair value in a take over.
Wait to see if Trump puts conditions on US ownership or rights on rail and port transport routes .
Fair Value ?
