The U.S. government is attempting to loosen China’s grip on global minerals by investing in a cobalt and copper project in sub-Saharan Africa that officials say could be the first of a handful of projects to move forward on the continent.
The U.S. Trade and Development Agency on Thursday announced a $1.4 million grant to help Metalex Commodities, a junior mining company, develop a mine and processing plant in Zambia that used to be owned by a Chinese company. The plant is slated to be commissioned later this year.
The government’s goal is to redirect the supply of minerals away from China, which holds a near monopoly on the processing and refining of cobalt used to make electric vehicles batteries, military equipment and manufacturing.
“We’re seeking to advance administration’s priorities in emerging markets all around the world and in Africa, one of our focus areas is critical minerals, certainly an area where there is plenty of competition with China,” Heather Lanigan, the regional director for sub-Saharan Africa at USTDA, told POLITICO’s E&E News in an interview.
