It has been reported that the state-owned mining company Gecamines and its subsidiary, Entreprise Generale du Cobalt (EGC), in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have signed an agreement granting EGC exclusive mining rights for five mining zones.
In accordance with a government decree from December 2019, EGC has been granted a monopoly on artisanal cobalt produced in the Central African nation. The Central African nation is the world's largest producer of cobalt metal, a crucial metal for global energy transition.
Gino Buhendwa Ntale, the President of EGC, stated in a release, "The provisions for these five mining zones from Gecamines to EGC will mark the beginning of standardizing artisanal cobalt mining and local entrepreneurial structures."
Artisanal miners use rudimentary methods to extract cobalt, making it the second-largest source of cobalt globally after industrial mining in Congo.
Later on Tuesday, the Mineral Security Partnership (MSP) also announced an agreement with Gecamines and Japan Oil, Gas, and Metals National Corporation (JOGMEC). MSP is a multinational collaboration comprising several countries and the European Union, aimed at investing in the global supply chain.
"It is a memorandum of understanding that will expedite European and Japanese investments in the mining sector of the Democratic Republic of Congo, and it is a robust demonstration of MSP's efforts to ensure the security and diversification of critical mineral supply chains," said Jose W. Fernandez, the U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy, during a media briefing.