In the current tornado of information and misinformation, these takeaway information stand clear to me:
1. Zijin/Jin Cheng claimed to have purchased 15% of Dathcom in July 2021 from state-owned COMINIERE. Yet, they were never publicly endorsed or welcomed into the project by the DRC government. In fact, the DRC_Africa Business Forum in November 2021 included AVZ as the only mining company invited into the DRC Battery Council. Zijin/Jin Cheng is a mining company and yet was not invited as a miner partner by the DRC into the DRC Battery Council. I think that it is unlikely that the DRC is not aware of this for 4 months so I think that it was an active decision to exclude Zijin/Jin Cheng from being invited into the DRC Battery Council.
My opinion: DRC does not recognise/welcome Zijin/Jin Cheng as a legal in Dathcom.
2. The Inspection General of Finance (IGF) in DRC was tasked with investigating this sale and concluded on 30th March 2022 that this sale was illegal, rushed and undervalues the state assets. The IGF has recommended to the DRC president accordingly. This is now public knowledge in the DRC.
My opinion: The public, IGF and DRC president knows that this transaction was illegal. It is now only a matter of time for the president to punish this accordingly. The public would expect punishment for rouge COMINIERE agents and Zijin/Jin Cheng.
3. AVZ has publicly announced on the Australian stock exchange that AVZ legally owns 75% of the Manono project (with a whole timeline of official announcements on the ASX to prove the legal purchase from Dathomir. No questions about this). Zijin/Jin Cheng has not announced their purchase of 15% of Dathcom in their China/Hong Kong stock exchanges besides several sentences on page 251 of the 2021 annual report as a footnote to financial statements. Being able to buy 15% of Dathcom for only USD$33.4 million would be the deal of the century so it makes no sense to hide it when Zijin has announced lesser acquisition/investment deals (in the same report, the acquisition of PE12453 and PE13427 greenfield exploration and mining rights project at the periphery of the Manono Lithium Mine in the DRC on page 40). It beggars belief that they would announce these small exploration projects and not the part-acquisition of the largest known lithium deposit in the world. Zijin did not even explain in this annual report what project or mineral Dathcom was involved in, whereas on the same report it announced. In fact, Zijin on 3rd August 2021 announced in an "Explanations on Media Reports" that: "To date, the Company has no lithium mineral resources or related business."
(
https://www.zijinmining.com/upload/...21/08/03/ddd3766e9bf740de817b42e1b52a2da0.pdf)
In the same media explanation announcement, Zijin's disclaimer was "The Company reminds investors that the Company’s designated media for information disclosure in the PRC are the Shanghai Securities News, Securities Times and the website of the Shanghai Stock Exchange (
http://www.sse.com.cn). All information contained in the Company’s announcements published in the abovementioned newspapers and website shall prevail."
The only in-detail announcement by Zijin (excluding possible third-party agents working on their behalf) about their involvement in Dathcom was on Zijin news webpages in English and Chinese, which are not listed as a "designated media for information disclosure".
My opinion: Zijin is aware that their transaction was illegal, hence the burying of the information within the depths of a 431-page annual report and not properly announcing it on the Chinese and Hong Kong sharemarket exchanges or "designated media".
4. There were precedent cases where the pre-emptive right to acquire more share in a project have been exercised successfully in DRC projects and defended at the ICC International Court of Arbitration. The pre-emptive rights has been shown to work in real-life in the DRC.
My opinion: Zijin/Jin Cheng are desperate to salvage their untenable position. Not pursuing their case in the DRC shows that they are aware that they will not get any support from the DRC government and the public. Not even their usual corruption tactics will save them this time.
5. New HC accounts popping up every day to spread fear about AVZ in the last few weeks.
My opinion: Shorters and those with an anti-AVZ agenda (whether sponsored/non-sponsored) are desperate to get shareholders to sell AVZ shares to them at a cheaper price because they cannot succeed in their objective without extra selling by others. AVZ shares are in demand by people with financial backing and in the know.
My summary: Everyone wants a pie of AVZ and Manono. Zijin/Jin Cheng shot themselves in the foot by buying the 15% stake for such a low price (makes it so much easier to see that it was a corrupted deal) and doing it illegally with blatant corruption. Time for us to cook the shorts (if the general market conditions allow). I am much more comfortable with my investment in AVZ, more than ever. If the shorters still want to play I've got a tonne of other stocks to sell to move cash into AVZ. Bring it on.
DYOR IMO
until then I’m fine 
cannot speak for anyone else 
