DRC’s Chemaf Faces Closure as Global Battle for Cobalt Heats Up
Chemaf Faces November Shutdown as US-China Rivalry Over Congo’s Copper and Cobalt Intensifies
A copper and cobalt producer in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has warned it may halt operations in November if it cannot secure new investment, underscoring the mounting tension between the United States and China over access to critical minerals.
Chemaf Resources Ltd., backed by commodities trader Trafigura Group, has been searching for a buyer for more than two years after financial difficulties stalled its flagship projects.
The company, which employs about 3,000 people, said it faces “significant and unsustainable financial pressure” and will be forced to cease production and related operations at the end of November if no investor is found, according to an internal email from Chairman Shiraz Virji seen by Bloomberg News.
Chemaf did not respond to requests for comment.
Chemaf’s troubles deepened earlier this year when a planned sale to Norin Mining, a unit of China’s state-owned Norinco Group, collapsed in March after Congolese authorities withheld approval.
State miner Gécamines, which owns the permit for Chemaf’s flagship Mutoshi project, objected to the deal. The U.S. government also urged President Félix Tshisekedi’s administration to block the transfer, reflecting Washington’s growing concern over Beijing’s dominance of global supply chains for critical minerals.
The failed sale left Chemaf scrambling for alternatives even as the firm struggles to service debt and complete its two major projects: an upgrade of the Étoile mine and the construction of Mutoshi, which is designed to produce 16,000 tons of cobalt and 50,000 tons of copper annually.
In 2022, Trafigura arranged a $600 million loan to finance the developments, but the funding has not been enough to offset mounting pressures.
Chemaf’s output has so far been relatively modest—it produced about 20,000 tons of copper in 2023—but its future projects represent a strategic prize in global minerals competition. Mutoshi, once operational, is expected to rank among the world’s largest cobalt mines.
That prospect has made Chemaf a focal point in the wider geopolitical tug-of-war between Washington and Beijing. Bloomberg reported in July that a U.S.-led consortium, involving former special forces and intelligence professionals and backed by Orion Resource Partners, had emerged as the leading bidder to acquire the company.
If successful, the deal could mark a significant step in U.S. efforts to counter China’s dominance in battery metals and secure alternative supplies for electric vehicles, aerospace, and defense industries.
The uncertainty surrounding Chemaf comes against a backdrop of shifting Congolese mining policy. The country, which produces about three-quarters of the world’s cobalt, recently banned exports of the mineral, though some shipments will resume in mid-October under newly announced quotas.
The government has capped exports at around 97,000 tons for 2026 and 2027—less than half of the country’s 2023 cobalt output. The move is intended to encourage more in-country processing but has added pressure to companies like Chemaf already facing financial and operational constraints.
For now, Chemaf’s survival hinges on securing a new investor capable of restructuring debt and completing stalled projects.
“We have intensified our efforts to identify a suitable investor,” Virji wrote to employees on September 16. But without one, he warned, operations will end in November.
The potential shutdown threatens jobs, production, and broader investor confidence in the DRC’s mining sector—at a time when global demand for copper and cobalt is rising sharply. It also underscores how the battle for Congo’s mineral wealth is as much about geopolitics as it is about economics.
