Congo to End Cobalt Export Ban in October, Introduces Quotas
Workers direct traffic from a copper and cobalt mine in southeastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
Photographer: Emmet Livingstone/AFP/Getty Images
The Democratic Republic of Congo will allow some cobalt exports to resume from next month, as the world’s biggest producer of the metal said quotas would replace a months-long ban on shipments.
The export ban, first announced in February after a slump in prices, will end on Oct. 15. After that, “a quota policy will be implemented” until further notice, Congo’s Authority for the Regulation and Control of Strategic Mineral Substances’ Markets, known as ARECOMS, said in a statement on Sunday.