Kobold Metals, an American mining company backed by billionaires Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates, announced that it has launched a lithium exploration campaign in the Democratic Republic of Congo, committing to invest more than $50 million by early 2027.

The United States is prioritizing Congo in its quest to stockpile vital minerals, in an attempt to reduce China's dominant position in the global mineral supply market.

American forms in Congo

The Democratic Republic of Congo is the world's largest producer of cobalt and Africa's largest copper supplier. It also possesses vast, though largely unexplored, lithium reserves, making it a crucial component of global supply chains for electric vehicles and the clean energy transition. The United States entered into a formal agreement with the Congolese government last year.

KoBold, an AI-driven mining company already active in copper exploration in Zambia, said its lithium exploration program spans 13 exploration licenses and includes aerial surveys across 30,000 square kilometers (18,640 square miles), intensive drilling, and extensive geochemical sampling, with lithium as the primary target.

As Kobold CEO Kurt Haus stated, the company has already paid more than $20 million to the Congolese treasury, making it the largest new investor in exploration in the Central African nation in recent years.

The campaign is centered around the Manono region in Tanganyika province, home to some of the world's highest lithium pegmatites, and is expected to expand Kobold's license to around 5,000 square kilometers by the end of the year.