AVZ Minerals claims that the Congo-KoBold merger violates the arbitration order
AVZ Minerals (3A2.H), a company based in Australia that owns the majority of the disputed Manono lithium project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, said Monday that a new agreement between Kinshasa and KoBold Metals, a company backed by the United States, to develop a portion of the project violates an existing international arbitration order.
One of the biggest undeveloped sources of lithium and tin in the world, the southern portion of the Manono lithium and tin deposit, is to be developed in partnership with KoBold, the DRC government said on July 18.
By committing the Congolese government to KoBold’s plan to purchase and develop the Roche Dure deposit at Manono, the deal essentially establishes the California-based company as Kinshasa’s preferred partner to get the project back on track.
The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes is now hosting an arbitration between Congo and AVZ over the government’s refusal to issue a mining permit. AVZ owns an interest in the Manono project through its company Dathcom Mining.
The business claimed that Congo’s agreement with KoBold Metals was in violation of interim orders given by the ICSID tribunal in January 2024, which mandated that Congo maintain AVZ’s rights during the proceedings and acknowledge Dathcom as the owner of the contested mining license.
KoBold Metals and Congolese authorities did not immediately reply to calls for comment.
“On July 18, 2025, AVZ notified the ICSID Tribunal about the KoBold agreement, which is a violation of its directives,” the business stated.
While not a signatory to the KoBold agreement, AVZ stated that it is still willing to engage in “constructive dialogue” with KoBold and all other parties in order to come to a business deal that upholds its contractual and legal rights.
