STRATEGIAStrategic Material Intelligence
CD · Country briefPublished Q2 2026Updated daily

DR Congo

Cobalt + copper at scale. State-equity regime is the new political constant.

The DRC produces ~70% of global cobalt and is a top-3 copper jurisdiction. The 2002 Mining Code (revised 2018 and 2026) maintains a state equity floor. Western buyers need to manage the Chinese mid-stream concentration (CMOC, ERG, Zijin) and the artisanal-mining ESG perimeter.

Jurisdiction at a glance

High-yield jurisdiction, high political variance. 2026 mining-code amendments raised state equity to 30% on new strategic projects. EITI member. Artisanal supply chain (~20% of cobalt) requires due diligence.

Regulatory regime

Mining Code (2002, revised 2018 and 2026). Cobalt market participation regulated through Entreprise Générale du Cobalt (EGC). Artisanal sector overseen by SAEMAPE.

Authorities & actors

  • Ministère des Mines
    Policy and concession award
  • Gécamines
    State mining company with stakes across CM portfolio
  • EGC
    Cobalt market regulator (since 2021)
  • SAEMAPE
    Artisanal mining oversight
  • EITI
    Transparency mechanism — DRC compliant

Key policies

  • Mining Code amendments 2026
    30% state equity on new strategic CM
    Active
  • EGC cobalt-monopoly framework
    Mid-stream channelisation of artisanal cobalt
    Active
  • Concession renewals 2026–2028
    Glencore, CMOC, ERG terms under review
    Pending

Mining cadastre & data sources

Cadastre Minier (CAMI) maintains the public-facing concessions database. STRATEGIA ingests CAMI updates daily, reconciled with corporate filings and EGC quarterly bulletins.

ESG regime

RMI-RMAP and OECD Due Diligence Guidance dominant. Artisanal cobalt supply traced via RCS Global / RMI partnerships. Child-labour incident database integrated.

Top materials produced

Cobalt (refined and ore)
#1 globally
CMOC Tenke + Glencore Mutanda + KCC
Copper
Top 5 globally
KCC, Tenke, Kamoa-Kakula
Coltan
Top 5 globally
AVZ Manono (lithium-tin-tantalum)
Lithium
Emerging (Manono)
AVZ + KoBold partnership

Top operators in this jurisdiction

Glencore
Operating
Mutanda + KCC; renewal cycle 2027
CMOC
Operating
Tenke Fungurume — Chinese majority owner
Ivanhoe / Zijin
Operating
Kamoa-Kakula copper
AVZ Minerals
Permitting
Manono lithium — arbitration with state ongoing

12-month outlook

Glencore Mutanda renewal terms set the precedent for 2026–2028 cycle. AVZ Manono arbitration award expected by Q4-2026 may unlock the deposit.

Watchlist

  • Glencore Mutanda renewal terms
  • AVZ Manono ICC arbitration ruling
  • EGC artisanal-cobalt channeling tonnage
  • EITI DRC validation cycle

Get the full DR Congo diligence file

This brief is the public summary. STRATEGIA subscribers receive the full 24-page diligence file with corporate-level data, beneficial-ownership tracing, FEOC scoring per operator, and quarterly updated supplier lists.