A little-known American company just planted a flag in one of the most strategically important mining regions on Earth. Virtus Minerals has acquired two major cobalt and copper mines in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, backed by US government support and over $700 million in total investment commitments.
The deal is being framed as the first significant US minerals acquisition in the DRC since the Washington Accord was established in December 2025. And the target it’s aimed at is hard to miss: Chinese firms currently control roughly 72% of Congolese cobalt and copper output.
What Virtus actually bought
Virtus Minerals purchased the copper-cobalt operations of DRC-based Chemaf SA, specifically the Etoile and Mutoshi mines. The upfront price tag was $30 million, plus the assumption of substantial existing debts.
The total investment commitment exceeds $700 million, with roughly $475 million in debt financing from Orion Resource Partners. The US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) is also involved in backing the deal.
