Saudi Arabia and UAE said to receive copper from DRC
- Gecamines to send 50,000 tonnes of cathode
- US agency in talks to fund venture
- Washington hosts meeting on critical minerals
Saudi Arabia and the UAE are reportedly set to receive copper supplies from the Democratic Republic of Congo.
DRC state-owned miner Gecamines will provide 50,000 tonnes of copper cathode through its joint venture with commodity trader Mercuria, Bloomberg reported, quoting the US International Development Finance Corporation.
The US government agency is in discussions to fund the joint venture, which last month decided to ship 100,000 tonnes to the US.
On Wednesday the US hosted the first 2026 critical minerals ministerial meeting, whose attendees included Saudi Arabia, the UAE, the UK, the European Union, Japan, India, South Korea, Australia and the DRC.
US President Donald Trump this week announced the creation of a critical mineral reserve, called “Project Vault”, worth $12 billion.
Chinese producers dominate copper and cobalt mining and processing in the DRC, the world’s second-biggest copper producer and home to the richest deposits of cobalt, a battery mineral.
Copper hit an all-time high of $13,310 per tonne on the London Metal Exchange on January 14 and is up around 40 percent since the start of 2025. However, the metal fell about 2 percent on Thursday.
The China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association has mooted plans to increase copper in the country’s strategic stockpiles.
Further reading:
- Gulf navigates increased US pressure to shut out China
- Gulf gets to grips with the new geopolitics of copper
- Oman secures $400m loan for copper mining project
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