CMOC agrees to pay Congo’s Gecamines $800 million to end row

CMOC said in a statement it will start paying the settlement fee this year and complete payment by 2028.

The Chinese mining company also said TFM will pay cumulatively at least $1.2 billion in dividends to Gécamines over the life of the project starting this year.

“CMOC will further consolidate partnerships with Gécamines and expand co-operation in the new energy and other sectors,” it said.

The firm is “committed to economic development and people’s welfare in Congo and making a greater contribution to co-operation between China and Congo,” it said.

Gécamines did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment.

The announcement comes after CMOC told Reuters last week it had resumed exports of copper and cobalt from its TFM mine that had been blocked by authorities in the country following the dispute.

Copper and cobalt shipments were halted in July 2022 after a row erupted when Gecamines said it suspected that CMOC understated TFM’s reserve levels to reduce the amount of royalties it pays to the state miner.

CMOC, which owns 80% of TFM while the governments holds the remainder, denied the allegations.

Both companies reached an agreement on future additional reserves and on the operation and management of TFM, CMOC said.

Gecamines will also be entitled to 20% of the total value of the project’s subcontracting and a right to acquire a volume of output proportional to its 20% stake in TFM in market terms, CMOC added.

CMOC produced 254,286 metric tons of copper and 20,286 metric tons of cobalt from the TFM operations in Congo last year.

The settlement with Gecamines will help TFM mines to expand its copper and cobalt capacity, CMOC said.