EGC and Gécamines Forge Exclusive Agreement for Cobalt Mining Rights
During the Mining Indaba event in Cape Town, South Africa, Entreprise Générale du Cobalt (EGC) and Gécamines announced an exclusive agreement granting mining rights for five squares to EGC. This deal empowers EGC to oversee artisanal cobalt mining fully.
Established in 2019 as a Gécamines subsidiary, EGC monopolizes the purchase and sale of artisanal cobalt in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The recent agreement aims to normalize artisanal cobalt mining and promote local entrepreneurship, ensuring fair remuneration and better protections for workers.
Gino Buhendwa Ntale, EGC’s Chairman, emphasized the importance of improving working conditions, preserving the environment, and fostering local entrepreneurship.
This move aligns with Gécamines’ and EGC’s goals of enhancing economic development while prioritizing transparency and standards in the cobalt sector.
However, tensions arose with mining cooperatives following EGC’s creation and monopoly on cobalt export. The transfer of mining squares, long anticipated since EGC’s inception, has drawn attention to the concessions’ selection process.
Some experts caution that concessions may already be controlled by political elites, highlighting the need for transparency in the allocation process.
