President Félix Tshisekedi wants to increase cobalt export revenues
The government of the Democratic Republic of Congo has been encouraged to put in place urgent measures that will better regulate the marketing of cobalt and increase revenue from its export, the ACP learned on Friday August 25, 2023. of the government.
"While accelerating the implementation of his strategy for the local transformation of this mineral, the President of the Republic has encouraged the government to put in place urgent measures which will make it possible to better regulate the marketing of Cobalt, to increase revenue from its export,” said government spokesman Patrick Muyaya during the minutes of the 110th meeting of the Council of Ministers read on national television.
"At a time when the volume of cobalt exploitation is growing exponentially and technology is central to our societies, it is curious to note that our country, despite its potential, derives very little profit from the restricted exploitation of the said metal, unlike multinationals which are recording record figures thanks in particular to the sale of this strategic mineral.
At the same time, the value of these multinationals has increased sharply and their capitalization far exceeds the gross domestic product of our country. 
This situation is due to shortcomings in the supply, pricing and export of cobalt,” he added.
Consequently, said Minister Muyaya, the Head of State asked the Ministers of Finance and Mines to finalize all the draft inter-ministerial decrees initiated by the Ministry of Finance and the coordination of the Prime Minister in order to allow better supervision in the export of cobalt with the aim of increasing revenue from its exploitation.
The 10 largest lithium mines in Africa, this highly coveted metal
Lithium is a key metal used in batteries for electric vehicles and essential for the energy transition.
Africa has considerable resources, amounting to 5% of the world's total reserves.
Here are the ten largest mines of this precious metal on the continent.
As the automotive industry shifts to electric vehicles, lithium-rich African countries such as Zimbabwe and Namibia are poised to benefit from increased global demand.
Countries like the DRC or Zambia have also decided to invest in the production of electric batteries.
The Nigerian authorities have just granted concessions to the Canadian mining company Thor Explorations for the exploitation of green metal.
African lithium is of particular interest to China and the United States, which compete in this economic field.
Lithium production is expected to increase more than 30 times by 2027, representing 12% of global supply.
Mali, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zimbabwe are among the African countries that should become the main producers of this metal in the coming years.
The African top 10
Energy Capital & Power, Africa's leading energy investment platform, has compiled a list of the 10 largest lithium mines in Africa.
The Arcadia Project, Zimbabwe, located 38 km east of the capital, Harare, hosts lithium reserves of 42.3 million tonnes, considered one of the largest hard rock lithium resources in the world.
The project was 87% bought by the Chinese mining company Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt, in 2022.
The group is expected to invest around 300 million dollars to build the mine and install a plant with a processing capacity of around 4.5 million tons of ore per year.
The objective is to be able to produce up to 400,000 tonnes of lithium concentrate annually.
The Bikita mine, Zimbabwe, is the main site in the country.
Following its acquisition by the Chinese mining group Sinomine Resource Group, the construction of a double lithium processing plant should lead to an annual production of up to 300,000 tons of concentrate of spodumene, a mineral of the silicate class, family pyroxenes, and 480,000 tonnes of petalite, another mineral from the silicate family.
The lithium and tantalum mine at Blesberg, South Africa, contains between 250,000 and 400,000 tonnes of lithium.
It is a property of the mining company Marula Mining. The first shipment of lithium ore was undertaken in January 2023.
The Bougouni project, Mali, with an estimated resource of 236,500 tonnes of lithium oxide, is expected to be developed as a conventional open pit mine.
A processing facility, under development by UK-based Kodal Minerals, is currently being designed to process two million tonnes of lithium ore per year.
Kodal Minerals signed a memorandum of understanding with engineering and construction company Sinohydro in September 2020 to co-develop the project.
The Ewoyaa Project, Ghana, intended to become the first producing lithium mine in Ghana, has mineral resources estimated at 35.3 million tonnes.
With production scheduled for the end of 2024, the project is being developed by the Australian company Atlantic Lithium, and should have a lifespan of 12.5 years.
With an initial investment of $125 million, it will use conventional surface mining methods.
The Goulamina project, Mali, is located approximately 150 km from Bamako, the capital.
The project is expected to produce 142.3 million tonnes of 1.38% lithium oxide over 21 years.
Developed and operated through a joint venture between Australian mining companies Leo Lithium and Chinese mining companies Jiangxi Ganfeng Lithium, the total capital cost of the project will exceed $320 million and will target production of spodumene concentrate in the first half of 2024.
The Karibib project, Namibia, with an estimated total production of 773,000 tonnes of lithium over 14 years.
The lithium concentrate produced from the mine will be shipped to a planned chemical plant with a production capacity of 56,700 tonnes per year of lithium concentrate in the United Arab Emirates.
The Karibib project is owned and operated by the Australian company Lepidico.
The Manono project, Democratic Republic of Congo, is operated by the Australian mining exploration company AVZ Minerals.
It is expected to produce around 700,000 tonnes per year of high-grade lithium over the mine's 20 years of operation.
The project is expected to have an investment of approximately $545.5 million and will target an estimated mineral resource base of 401 million tonnes of lithium oxide.
The Zulu lithium/tantalum project, Zimbabwe, is considered the largest undeveloped lithium site in Zimbabwe.
It will include 14 mining concessions covering an area of approximately 2.5 km2.
Owned by mining company Premier African Minerals, the project will target an inferred mineral resource of 526,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent.
The mine began production in the first quarter of 2023 and will see the development of a pilot plant with a capacity of 50,000 tons per year by the Chinese research and development company Suzhou TA&A Ultra Clean Technology.
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