Congo tries to blunt COVID-19 impact as cobalt exports slump
2020-04-21 08:34:54 [Print]
The Democratic Republic of Congo will begin a massive public-health information campaign for hundreds of thousands of hand-miners as part of a plan to offset the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on its key cobalt and copper industry.
The proposals are contained in a report drafted by the Mines Ministry that warns of a catastrophic situation if the effects of the Covid-19 outbreak lead to major mine closures.
Congo, the world's biggest producer of cobalt and Africa's largest copper miner, has no known COVID-19 cases in its copper-belt region in the southeast of the country. Most mines, including ones run by Glencore Plc and China Molybdenum Co., continue to operate amid staffing restrictions.
"If certain measures are taken and applied with proper monitoring, we can considerably minimize the negative impact of this pandemic on the mining sector and, in turn, the negative impact on the national economy," the ministry said in the seven-page report verified by Mines Minister Willy Kitobo Samsoni.
While the bulk of Congo's metal comes from large, mechanized mines, an estimated 200,000 people make a living digging copper and cobalt by hand. To offset the risk of the disease spreading among these so-called artisanal miners, the government is sending teams to train them on social distancing and disease prevention, the ministry said.
The proposals come as Congolese exports of cobalt, a key ingredient in rechargeable batteries, slumped 15% in the first quarter, while copper shipments grew 13%.
The proposals are contained in a report drafted by the Mines Ministry that warns of a catastrophic situation if the effects of the Covid-19 outbreak lead to major mine closures.
Congo, the world's biggest producer of cobalt and Africa's largest copper miner, has no known COVID-19 cases in its copper-belt region in the southeast of the country. Most mines, including ones run by Glencore Plc and China Molybdenum Co., continue to operate amid staffing restrictions.
"If certain measures are taken and applied with proper monitoring, we can considerably minimize the negative impact of this pandemic on the mining sector and, in turn, the negative impact on the national economy," the ministry said in the seven-page report verified by Mines Minister Willy Kitobo Samsoni.
While the bulk of Congo's metal comes from large, mechanized mines, an estimated 200,000 people make a living digging copper and cobalt by hand. To offset the risk of the disease spreading among these so-called artisanal miners, the government is sending teams to train them on social distancing and disease prevention, the ministry said.
The proposals come as Congolese exports of cobalt, a key ingredient in rechargeable batteries, slumped 15% in the first quarter, while copper shipments grew 13%.
Cobalt Conc. 6-8% CIF China
Unit:USD/lb Co
China cobalt chloride producers' sales volume statistics by province by month
Unit: mt
