Congo’s Miners Face Harsh New Reality as Mining Law Finalized
- After months of talks, miners got no concessions on new law
- Investors face few options other than arbitration: Investec
A Caterpillar Inc. mining truck drives past an open pit excavation at the Mutanda copper and cobalt mine in Mutanda, Katanga province.
Photographer: Simon Dawson/Bloomberg
The options for mining companies battling new legislation in the Democratic Republic of Congo -- Africa’s biggest copper producer and the source of two-thirds of the world’s cobalt -- have just about run out.
After six months of lobbying, companies including Glencore Plc and Randgold Resources Ltd. have got nowhere in their battle to push back against the mining law, which voids existing agreements and increases their costs. Congo approved the final part of the bill on Friday, and despite earlier indications from President Joseph Kabila that the rules might be eased, the law hasn’t been weakened in any way.