could undermine China's dominance in the metal, which is used in electronics and solar cells.
About 60 per cent of the world's germanium is produced in China, according to the Critical Raw Materials Alliance. In August, the Asian nation restricted copper exports amid an escalating tit-for-tat technology trade war with the United States and Europe.
Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi inaugurated a hydrometallurgical facility in the southeast of the country on Wednesday.
The plant will produce germanium, zinc oxide, copper and cobalt from mining waste from a nearby tailings site called Big Hill, according to the plant's website. The project is operated by Societe congo pour le Traitement du Terril de Lubumbashi (STL), a subsidiary of state-owned mining company Gecamines.
STL's website claims that it produces 30% of the world's supply of germanium, which is noteworthy: the silvery-white metal is used in fibre-optic communications, night-vision goggles and space exploration. Most satellites are powered by germanium-based solar cells. China controls much of the world's supply of the metal, which is considered vital to strategic industries.
Congo is already the world's largest source of cobalt, a key battery mineral, and one of the world's top three copper producers. Congo is demonstrating its ambition to become a bigger player in germanium through its new STL business.
[Source - CKN].
