Kamoto Copper Company (KCC): a cobalt operation in DR Congo
Kamoto Copper Company (KCC) is a copper-cobalt mine producing cobalt in Lualaba Province, DR Congo, operated by Glencore. The sources report 22.9 kt cobalt contained in concentrates and hydroxides (Glencore 'Cobalt' line, KCC) for CY2025; the basis is as reported by operator (Glencore production reports are on a 100% basis for controlled assets, footnote 1 p.1). In cobalt content, whole-operation output for CY2025 is 22,900 tonnes: about 7.4% of world cobalt output in 2025 and about 10% of DR Congo's; it is one of 4 operations on this site whose output can be stated in cobalt content.
Who owns and operates it?
| Owner | Interest | As of |
|---|---|---|
| Glencore | 70% | 31 December 2025 |
How much does it produce?
| Period | Output | Basis | Where in the source |
|---|---|---|---|
| CY2025 | 22.9 kt cobalt contained in concentrates and hydroxides (Glencore 'Cobalt' line, KCC) | as reported by operator (Glencore production reports are on a 100% basis for controlled assets, footnote 1 p.1) | PDF p.10, table 'Production from own sources - Copper assets', KCC Cobalt row; footnote 2 'Cobalt contained in concentrates and hydroxides' · Glencore plc |
| CY2024 | 27.2 kt cobalt contained in concentrates and hydroxides | as reported by operator | PDF p.10, same row, 2024 column · Glencore plc |
How the cobalt-content figure is worked out. Glencore reports 22.9 thousand tonnes of cobalt contained in concentrates and hydroxides for the operation, on a 100% basis, rounded to the nearest 100 tonnes. World mine production of cobalt in 2025 was 310,000 tonnes (USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026); DR Congo produced 230,000 tonnes.
Status: operating in CY2025.
- DR Congo suspended cobalt exports on 21 February 2025 and set export quotas from 16 October 2025 (USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026), so reported cobalt output in 2025 reflects policy as well as capacity.
How does it compare?
Other cobalt operations on this site: Tenke Fungurume and Kisanfu (CMOC), Mutanda, Huayue Nickel Cobalt, Ramu nickel-cobalt, Moa joint venture, Murrin Murrin. In DR Congo: Tenke Fungurume and Kisanfu (CMOC), Mutanda. See where cobalt comes from for the country totals, the country page for DR Congo, and Glencore for its other operations here.
The same site is also listed for another commodity: Kamoto Copper Company (KCC) (copper).
Sources
- Glencore plc: Resources and Reserves report 2025 (resources and reserves report, as at 31 Dec 2025). Opened 3 November 2026; used: PDF pp.9, 10, 31, 32, 34.
- Glencore plc: Full Year 2025 Production Report (production report / news release (29 January 2026), CY2025, CY2024). Opened 3 November 2026; used: pp.1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 10, 12.
- U.S. Geological Survey: Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Cobalt (government statistical summary, 2025 (world and country mine production)). Opened 3 November 2026; used: world and country mine production table.
Method and limits
- Reported, not estimated. Output is the figure the operator or owner published, in the unit it used. This site does not estimate output where none is published.
- Shares. A share divides output in cobalt content by the USGS world or country total for 2025. Where the operator's year is a fiscal year or the unit is a concentrate or a carbonate equivalent, the share is approximate or not given.
- Whole operation or owner's share. The basis column says which. A joint venture's output is never counted twice.
- Partial list. Only operations with a published figure are listed, so the rank is among those on this site, not among every cobalt mine. Shares of a country's output mix periods and bases, so treat them as indicative.
- Made with AI assistance, checked against sources. The facts were gathered from the documents above by AI-assisted research and re-checked against those documents by a second, independent pass; the page text is generated from the data. No professional review took place. How the site is made. To report an error, contact us; fixes are logged on the corrections page.