Congo Moves to Monopolize About 25% of All Cobalt Exports

  • Decrees seen as bid to exert greater control over prices
  • Artisanal diggers can account for 20% of the country’s output

A conveyor belt carries chunks of raw cobalt at a plant in Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo.

Photographer: Samir Tounsi/AFP via Getty Images

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The Democratic Republic of Congo created a state monopoly for hand-mined cobalt as the government tries to exert more market control on the battery material.