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Kolwezi: COMINIERE SA highlights the potential of Congolese lithium at the DRC–Africa Battery Metals Forum
NEWSMINES AND INDUSTRIESCOMPANY
Kolwezi: COMINIERE SA highlights the potential of Congolese lithium at the DRC–Africa Battery Metals Forum
October 17, 2025 Editorial
A remarkable presence at the heart of the debate on critical minerals
The Congolese Mining (COMINIERE SA) took an active part in the third edition of the DRC–Africa Battery Metals Forum, organized in Kolwezi, the world capital of cobalt, around the theme:
"Explore foreign interest in critical minerals to boost the country's economy."
This international meeting, which has become a major meeting for actors in the extractive and energy sector, served as a framework for exchanges on the local recovery of mineral resources, downstream industrialization and regional and international cooperation around battery metals.
A showcase of national know-how
After the opening ceremony, the delegations and visitors took part in a guided tour of the stands, including that of COMINIERE SA, which aroused great interest.
The technical teams presented the mission, projects and ambitions of this public company, considered a pillar of lithium development in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
"The COMINIERE is now a key player in the energy transition thanks to its diversified mining heritage and its structuring projects in Manono," explained Director General Célestin Kibeya, during the exchanges with the participants.
Technical exchanges on infrastructure challenges
On the first day of the forum, Director General Célestin Kibeya took part in a high-level panel dedicated to the theme:
"Investments in infrastructure, an essential driver of progress".
Alongside Jean-Jacques Koyembe (Director General of the ITI-DRC) and Dieudonné Been Masudi (AFREWATCH), he insisted on the need to develop energy, rail and road infrastructure capable of supporting the emerging battery metal industry.
The case of the Lobito corridor and the Tazara railway project was cited as a model of regional integration to facilitate local processing and reduce dependence on gross ore exports.
Manono, future global lithium hub
The second day of the forum was marked by a round table hosted by the COMINIERE, focused on lithium and the Manono project, one of the most promising deposits on the African continent.
Located in the province of Tanganyika, the Manono project is considered the largest and richest lithium deposit in Africa, and the second in the world after that of Greenbushes in Australia.
Research has confirmed the presence of spodumene, lepidolite and ambligonite pegmatites, testifying to the exceptional potential of this historic site.
"Our goal is clear: to make Manono the lithium capital of the world," said Célestin Kibeya, highlighting the progress already made by COMINIERE, including the rehabilitation of the Mpiana Mwanga hydroelectric power plant, whose capacity will increase from 43 to 150 MW, and the construction of strategic routes facilitating mining logistics between Lubumbashi, Manono and Mpiana Mwanga.
A local development actor
Beyond mining, COMINIERE is a player in socio-economic development in the provinces of Tanganyika, Haut-Lomami and Haut-Katanga.
Its investments have allowed the creation of more than 2,000 direct jobs and 3,000 indirect jobs, promoting the economic revitalization of several territories.
The general manager recalled that the company is preparing, from 2026, the launch of the production of lithium concentrates in a first phase, before the production of lithium carbonate in the second phase, once the energy plant is fully operational.
Towards a fourth edition in Kalemie
The COMINIERE closed its participation with a cocktail of thanks, during which Célestin Kibeya thanked the organizers of the forum for the quality of the exchanges.
He expressed the wish to see the fourth edition of the Battery Metals Forum held in Kalemie, with a view to decentralization and enhancement of the Manono project, symbol of the country's new energy era.
"As Kolwezi is the world capital of cobalt, we want Manono to become the world capital of lithium," he concluded, to the applause of the audience.
In short, through its active participation in this third edition of the DRC–Africa Battery Metals Forum, COMINIERE SA reaffirmed its position as a Congolese leader in lithium and its major contribution to the global energy transition.
With a vision focused on innovation, sustainability and local transformation, the public company is emerging as a strategic player in making the DRC the African engine of battery metals.
Junior Ngandu
