CMOC Group

What it is

CMOC Group Limited is a Chinese diversified mining company headquartered in Luanchuan County, Henan Province, China, listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (3993.HK) and the Shanghai Stock Exchange (603993). Originally a molybdenum miner, CMOC is now the world's largest producer of cobalt and a top-ten global copper producer. Its critical-minerals footprint runs from the Democratic Republic of Congo, where it holds majority stakes in two of the world's largest copper-cobalt deposits, to Brazil (niobium, phosphate, gold) and Ecuador (gold). As of 2024, CMOC accounted for roughly one-third of global mined cobalt supply and 650,161 tonnes of annual copper output.

History

CMOC began as a molybdenum and tungsten miner in Henan Province. Its transformation into a critical-minerals major came through acquisitions. In 2016, CMOC purchased the Tenke Fungurume Mine (TFM) in the DRC's Lualaba Province from Freeport-McMoRan for US$2.65 billion, financed in part by at least US$1.59 billion in Chinese state-backed bank loans. The 80%-owned TFM holds copper resources of 29.57 million tonnes at 2.25% grade and cobalt resources of 3.29 million tonnes at 0.25% grade, among the richest deposits on earth. In 2019, CMOC acquired the adjacent Kisanfu (KFM) mine, holding a 71.25% stake. Gécamines, the DRC state mining company, holds a minority share in TFM and in 2022 launched a royalty and governance dispute that led to a temporary export suspension. CMOC and Gécamines resolved the dispute in April 2023, allowing exports to resume and DRC production to accelerate sharply through 2024.

Current state

As of mid-2026, CMOC operates five copper production lines at TFM (combined capacity over 450,000 tonnes per year) and at least two at KFM (over 200,000 tonnes per year, with a Phase II expansion targeting an additional 100,000 tonnes per year from 2027). Combined DRC production in 2025 reached 741,100 tonnes of copper and 117,500 tonnes of cobalt. Total 2024 group revenue was RMB 213 billion (approximately US$29 billion), with net profit of RMB 13.5 billion, up 64% year on year. Two constraints shape the near-term picture. The DRC government set CMOC's 2026 cobalt export quota at 31,200 tonnes, roughly 27% of 2025 cobalt output, as a price-support mechanism for cobalt that fell from US$80,000 per tonne in 2022 to below US$26,000 per tonne by 2025. A labour stoppage at TFM began June 1, 2026, compounding the quota pressure, as documented in June 2026 strike at CMOC's Tenke Fungurume Mine compounded a DRC cobalt quota limiting exports to 27% of 2025 production.

Relationships

CMOC's critical counterparty is the DRC government, which controls export licensing, cobalt quotas, and local employment obligations. Gécamines is a minority equity partner in TFM and a recurring source of sovereign friction over royalty and governance terms. Chinese state-backed banks hold legacy debt from the TFM acquisition, giving Beijing indirect exposure to DRC operations and reinforcing the political sensitivity of any supply disruption. On the demand side, CMOC cobalt feeds the global lithium-ion battery supply chain, principally NMC cathode manufacturers in China, South Korea, and Japan. CMOC's copper production interacts with smelting capacity across Asia; the Kamoa-Kakula smelter in the DRC represents a competing in-country processing model, contrasting with CMOC's export-of-cathode-and-hydroxide approach at TFM.

What to watch

The 31,200-tonne cobalt quota is the central variable for global cobalt supply through 2026: enforcement determines whether a structural price recovery materialises for battery manufacturers planning NMC chemistry costs. Resolution of the June 2026 TFM labour stoppage matters for copper output against CMOC's 760-820,000-tonne full-year guidance. KFM Phase II, scheduled for 2027, would extend CMOC's DRC copper capacity toward 800,000-1,000,000 tonnes annually. A sustained low cobalt price environment may accelerate CMOC's strategic pivot toward copper, further deprioritising cobalt output in ways the DRC export quota does not fully capture.