" The Scramble for Cobalt: Geopolitical competition and mining contract renegotiations in the DRC<i> "</i>

Diplôme Master " The Scramble for Cobalt: Geopolitical competition and mining contract renegotiations in the DRC<i> "</i> eng 2025-01-24 author Schibli Lilian Melanie 975372 director O'Sullivan Mary 0000-0002-7429-836X 724482 Service enseignement, recherche, administratif et technique (SdS) (SCSPS) 103 This paper examines the negotiation process between the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Chinese mining companies for copper-cobalt mining concessions in the context of intensifying global competition for critical minerals. Chinese companies have been expanding in the DRC, raising concerns in Washington about the security of cobalt supplies. This paper explores how Congolese elites leveraged geopolitical competition to renegotiate the contracts for two major Chinese-controlled mining projects: Sicomines and Tenke Fungurume. Drawing on Katz-Lavigne's concept of "renegotiation window", it argues that such a window opened from 2019, enabled by renewed US strategic interest in securing access to Congolese minerals and President Félix Tshisekedi's contested rise to power. Through process tracing, largely based on journalistic sources, this study reconstructs the power shift between Congolese elites, the US and Chinese companies during the renegotiations. The findings show that US support facilitated the revision of the contracts and provided Tshisekedi with a strategic opportunity to distance himself from his predecessor, Joseph Kabila. As a result, the DRC was able to secure more favourable terms while maintaining strong diplomatic ties with both China and the US. However, the concessions made by the Chinese companies have remained moderate, reflecting their significant influence over the Congolese state. The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) Chinese mining companies Copper-cobalt mining concessions Global competition Critical minerals Geopolitical competition Renegotiate the contracts Sicomines Tenke Fungurume Katz-Lavigne's concept Dewey 330 Dewey 330.9 Master in Political Economy of Capitalism 193 Institut d'histoire économique Paul Bairoch TE 123 Département d'histoire, économie et société T5 false d576721b-066e-4a06-bfc7-8b8ca1b247ab Master thesis Public Final_Verion_Schibli_-The_scramble_.pdf 1214307 application/pdf 5b6a8f5a686e4218035a5f49fc6adf3b67fde206dfe2bb49cf7566be47016f85 openAccess Faculté des sciences de la société / Institut d'histoire économique Paul Bairoch Faculté des sciences de la société / Département d'histoire, économie et société

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" The Scramble for Cobalt: Geopolitical competition and mining contract renegotiations in the DRC "				2025	141	1,080

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Schibli, Lilian Mélanie

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