Production at new DRC cobalt project suspended late last year: miner MMG

06 March 2025 - 14:00
By Reuters
MMG's Kinsevere Extension Project upgraded the existing Kinsevere copper mine in the DRC to also include cobalt production. File photo.
Image: REUTERS/Kenny Katombe MMG's Kinsevere Extension Project upgraded the existing Kinsevere copper mine in the DRC to also include cobalt production. File photo.

Mining company MMG placed its Kinsevere cobalt project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) on care and maintenance in December due to unfavourable cobalt market conditions, the company said in its annual report on Tuesday.

MMG's Kinsevere Extension Project upgraded the existing Kinsevere copper mine to also include cobalt production.

The project reached "mechanical completion" in September last year, however the cobalt plant was mothballed shortly afterwards, MMG said.

"However, the cobalt plant was placed in care and maintenance in December 2024 due to unfavourable cobalt market conditions," the report said.

The DRC, the world's top producer of cobalt, last month temporarily halted cobalt exports to try and close a global glut of the metal.