Idled Mutanda, Covid-19 to drive 25% drop in DRC's cobalt production

Cobalt production in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), which is the world's biggest producer of the metal, is expected to decline by 25% this year, says financial risk management, solutions and insights company Fitch Solutions Country Risk and Industry Research (Fitch Solutions).

This decline will be primarily driven by the idling of Glencore's Mutanda mine in late 2019. Mutanda had been a major contributor to the country’s cobalt output, accounting for about 25.1% of total output in 2019.