MMG Suspends Cobalt Processing at Kinsevere Amid Price Slump
Chinese state-controlled miner MMG Ltd has halted operations at its cobalt processing plant in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) just 15 months after its launch, citing a sharp decline in cobalt prices.
The company, 67% owned by China Minmetals Corp, suspended the facility at its Kinsevere mine in December 2024 due to unfavorable market conditions.
This decision comes as the Congolese government imposed a four-month export ban on cobalt last week, aiming to curb oversupply and stabilize prices in the world’s leading cobalt-producing nation.
MMG recently completed a $600 million project to boost copper output and introduce cobalt production at Kinsevere. The two metals are mined together in the DRC, the world’s second-largest copper producer.
While MMG began commissioning the cobalt plant in September 2023, it placed the facility on care and maintenance by the end of 2024. The company sold 1,600 tons of cobalt last year.
A company spokesperson stated that MMG has adopted a “flexible production strategy”, with cobalt operations resuming only if market conditions improve. Meanwhile, the company is focusing on increasing copper output at Kinsevere by at least 40% in 2025.
Cobalt production in the DRC, which accounts for about 75% of global supply, has surged in recent years, largely due to China’s CMOC Group ramping up output at two major mines. This oversupply drove prices down, prompting the DRC’s surprise export ban on February 24, 2025.
Since the ban, cobalt hydroxide prices—the primary export product from the DRC—have risen by 33%, reaching $7.60 per pound on March 5, 2025, the highest level since November 2023, according to Fastmarkets.
MMG, listed in Hong Kong, produced 380,000 tons of copper in 2024 from its mines in Africa, Australia, and South America. Its Las Bambas mine in Peru remains the company’s largest asset.
