ERG’s Metalkol signs a ten-year agreement to secure electricity supply to its cobalt and copper operations in the DRC
Metalkol SA (“Metalkol”), a major cobalt and copper tailings reprocessing project and a low-cost hydro-metallurgical facility owned by Eurasian Resources Group (“ERG”), has signed an agreement to secure electricity supply to its operations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) for up to ten years.
The contract was agreed with Société National d’Electricité (“SNEL”), the national electricity company of the DRC; the Copperbelt Energy Corporation Plc (“CEC”), a Zambian incorporated power transmission, generation and distribution company, which is a major developer of energy infrastructure in Africa; and Rawbank, a top commercial bank in the DRC.
The agreement to supply electricity is comprised of two phases: the first will run until Q2 2019 with a total of 62MW delivered. Following this, the power supply will ramp up to 78MW per year during the second phase and for the remainder of the contract.
CEC’s Managing Director Owen Silavwe, SNEL’s Director General Jean-Bosco Kayombo Kayan and Metalkol’s CEO Patrick Mulumba are signatories to the agreement.
Benedikt Sobotka, CEO of Eurasian Resources Group, commented: “This is an important milestone in the progress of the Metalkol project, a unique development for the global battery industry. It is an example of sustainable and environmentally conscious treatment of the local environment, and of our wider strategic ambitions in Africa. Together with our partners, who are vital companies in their respective countries, we have found an effective solution to guarantee a reliable electricity supply, which has previously been an issue in the region.”
Owen Silavwe, Managing Director of CEC, said: “Supplying baseload power requirements to mining houses is CEC’s principal business. With many years’ experience successfully supplying reliable power for mining operations in both Zambia and the DRC, this agreement demonstrates CEC’s commitment and agility to meet the specific requirements of customers in the DRC market. It also reaffirms CEC’s partnership with SNEL and the mining community in the DRC. CEC has put together a robust portfolio of power sources, invested in transmission networks in Zambia, including the only interconnection of DRC’s SNEL network to the regional interconnected network, and is proactively finding solutions to customers’ changing needs. We are excited by the opportunity to extend our services to Metalkol and to provide an effective power solution that will contribute to the success of the project.”
Jean-Bosco Kayombo Kayan, SNEL Director General, said: “SNEL has a mission to contribute to the economic development of the DRC by providing as much energy as possible to industrial producers operating in the country. With this aim in mind, SNEL has entered into an agreement with Metalkol in order to respond to its demand for energy in the most efficient way. The trilateral agreement signed by Metalkol, CEC and SNEL demonstrates SNEL’s willingness to serve its customers by offering its expertise in the Southern African energy market.”
