According to Reuters, DRC state-owned miner Gécamines has made a firm proposal and intends to acquire three copper-cobalt assets from Eurasian Resources Group (ERG) in the DRC.

The Reuters report is the latest media article to suggest that the DRC government is interested in some of ERG's assets. An October 2023 Bloomberg report suggested that Gécamines was interested in taking control of some of ERG’s copper-cobalt assets further to claims that ERG has been too slow in developing certain projects. Not long afterwards, ERG made its plans to invest US$800M in a new hydrometallurgical facility at COMIDE public.

In December 2023, a Reuters article suggested that Gécamines planned to push to secure the rights to buy copper and cobalt at mines where it had holdings. According to the article, Gécamines needed to amend some terms of its joint venture agreements in the DRC to secure the rights. Gécamines Chairman Guy Robert Lukama reportedly told Reuters that Gécamines wants to be able to buy copper and cobalt proportional to its stakes in joint ventures. When the news broke, Project Blue noted that if Gécamines stated plans were successful the repercussions could be significant, with the state-owned miner holding minority shares in Boss Mining, Deziwa, Kipoi, Luisha, Mikas, Musonoi, Sicomines and more. 

This latest Reuters article suggests that Gécamines intends to buy three of ERG's assets in the country. The assets have not been named and ERG has not confirmed whether Gécamines has made an offer but ERG’s Kalukundi concession and Boss Mining operation are thought to be central to the state-owned miner's thoughts. Meanwhile, it is assumed that ERG's Metalkol RTR (Roan Tailings Reclamation), Frontier, and COMIDE assets are not part of Gécamines' plans.