America Just Bought 40% of Congo's Cobalt. China Owned That Game.

America just bought 40% of the world's biggest cobalt operation. For $3.6 billion. In a country where China had owned the game for 20 years. On December 4, 2025, Tshisekedi and Kagame flew to Washington and signed the US–DRC Strategic Partnership Agreement at the US Institute of Peace. The deal gave America priority access to cobalt, copper, tantalum, and lithium — all mined in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Then in February 2026, the US-backed Orion Critical Mineral Consortium struck a non-binding MOU with Glencore: 40% of Mutanda Mining and Kamoto Copper Company (KCC) — Glencore's flagship DRC assets in Kolwezi. Combined enterprise value: $9 billion. Orion's stake: $3.6 billion. In 2025 those two mines alone produced 247,800 tonnes of copper and 33,500 tonnes of cobalt. The DRC supplies roughly 73% of the world's cobalt. But there's a problem. The Strategic Partnership Agreement was never presented to Congo's parliament. A constitutional challenge has been filed. The Strategic Assets Reserve — the joint 5+5 steering committee that gives the US priority access — could be ruled illegal. Planes flew east. Cobalt may not flow west. Follow Money Maps for more geopolitics, mapped out. Sources: • Glencore press release (Feb 2026) — Orion CMC MOU on Mutanda + KCC • Mining.com (Feb 2026) — $5B US critical minerals fund with Orion • U.S. Department of State (Feb 2026) — Rubio meeting with Tshisekedi • White House / DFC — Strategic Partnership Agreement, December 4, 2025 • Public Citizen + Oakland Institute — constitutional challenge filing • Glencore FY2025 production report — 247.8kt Cu / 33.5kt Co #congo #drc #cobalt #china #america #trump #glencore #orion #criticalminerals #geopolitics #moneymaps #short