The Democratic Republic of Congo has granted seven exploration licenses to the American mining company “Cobalt Metals,” backed by billionaires Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates. This allows access to the city of Manono in the southeast of the country, home to one of the world’s largest lithium reserves, estimated at over 44 million tons.

The Kinshasa government signed the agreement with the company last July as part of a broad national program to explore strategic minerals, primarily lithium, a key element in manufacturing batteries for electric vehicles, smartphones, computers, and solar panels.

Manono gained global significance in 2020 when the Australian mining company “AVZ Minerals” revealed the massive lithium reserve in the area, bringing it to the forefront of international negotiations on the future of clean energy and Africa’s role in global supply chains.

Despite this momentum, the project remains the subject of a legal dispute between the Congolese government and the Australian company after authorities refused to grant the company a license to exploit the mine, sparking controversy over mining concession policies in the country.

This development comes as major economic powers race to secure supplies of critical minerals needed for the transition to renewable energy, positioning the Democratic Republic of Congo as a key player in the global lithium market and placing Manono at the heart of the energy equation for the coming years.