Tripartite MOU to establish direct U.S.–DRC cobalt supply chain

(Posted on 14/05/26)

Entreprise Générale du Cobalt, EVelution Energy LLC and Trafigura Pte Ltd. has announced the signing of a tripartite Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to establish a framework for the long-term supply of Congolese cobalt hydroxide to the United States.

Trafigura is a leading commodities group, owned by its employees and founded over 30 years ago. At the heart of global supply, Trafigura deploy infrastructure, market expertise and worldwide logistics network to move metals and minerals, oil and petroleum products, gas and power from where they are produced to where they are needed.

The arrangement is expected, subject to definitive agreements, to support EVelution Energy’s production of up to approximately 40% of projected U.S. cobalt demand. This represents a landmark step toward a commercial framework linking EGC and the Congolese cobalt sector, through Trafigura, with EVelution Energy, the first commercial-scale cobalt sulphate and cobalt metal processor in the United States. It builds on the December 2025 U.S.–DRC strategic critical minerals agreement aimed at strengthening secure supply chains between the United States and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Planned Commercial Structure:

EGC is expected to originate cobalt hydroxide under its state mandate in the DRC
Trafigura is expected to provide supply chain, logistics and marketing services.
EVelution Energy is expected to process the material at its Arizona facility into battery-grade cobalt sulfate and/or alloy-grade cobalt metal for the U.S. aerospace and defense and EV battery industries.

This integrated model is designed to derisk cross-border flows and support long-term, bankable supply of cobalt feedstock into the United States.

Cobalt is a critical input for aerospace, defence systems, electric vehicles, and advanced technologies (including microchips and permanent magnets). EVelution Energy’s facility in Yuma County, Arizona will be the first commercial-scale cobalt refinery in U.S., and is designed to establish secure domestic cobalt processing capacity supported by reliable long-term feedstock supply from the DRC.

EVelution Energy, Trafigura, and EGC are expected to leverage the Lobito Atlantic Railway (LAR), which is owned solely by its shareholders, Trafigura, Mota-Engil and Vecturis, and comprises a 1,300-kilometre rail line linking the deep-water port of Lobito on Angola’s Atlantic coast to the DRC border at Luau, with a further 450-kilometre extension to Kolwezi in the heart of the DRC’s Copperbelt.

The railway provides the shortest route from Kolwezi to an African port, reducing inland transit times to approximately seven days. LAR has received $753 million in financing from the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) and the Development Bank of Southern Africa. The use of LAR is expected to deliver cost and transport time savings for all parties.

These efficiencies are expected to materially improve supply chain reliability and competitiveness of U.S.-based refining, underpinning a supply chain capable of supporting a significant share of U.S. cobalt demand.

Tripartite MOU to establish direct U.S.–DRC cobalt supply chain

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Tripartite MOU to establish direct U.S.–DRC cobalt supply chain

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