The Congolese police has clashed with illegal copper miners
operating in the Tenke Fungurume copper/cobalt mining concession
which started output in May this year, a company official told Dow
Jones Newswires late Tuesday.
Tenke Fungurume communications officer Margaret Rashidi Kabamba
said that a group of illegal artisanal miners were dispersed from
Kakule hill, within the mining areas of Tenke Fungurume, over the
weekend, which sparked off riots that culminated into clashes
between the miners and local authorities. Tenke Fungurume is
majority-owned by U.S-based Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc.
(FCX).
According to Kabamba, the individuals who had been engaged in
the unsanctioned and illegal mining activities demonstrated outside
the police station in Fungurume on Sunday demanding retrieval of
the mineral ores confiscated by the police.
“Local authorities dispersed the demonstration and arrested one
individual. No one was injured,” she said adding that the incident
had no impact on operations of the copper mine.
Illegal mining activities remain one of the major challenges of
mining companies operating in Congo. Analysts say that years of
political instability and civil wars have left authorities with
little control over mining concessions, allowing illegal miners to
take over most facilities. Millions of Congolese are engaged in
illegal mining activities mainly in Katanga and the lawless eastern
and north eastern regions.
Freeport has spent at least $2 billion on Tenke Fungurume, which
according to analysts is the largest exploited copper and cobalt
deposit in the world. The company is also embroiled in a contract
row with the Congolese government over the project.
Freeport holds a 57.75% stake in the project while Lundin Mining
Corp (LUN.T) holds 24.75%, with the remainder owned by Congo’s
state mining company, Gecamines.
-By Nicholas Bariyo, contributing to Dow Jones Newswires; +256
75 2624615; bariyonic@yahoo.co.uk