(Ecofin Agency) - The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) produces over 70% of the world’s cobalt, but most of it is refined in China, which also owns several Congolese mines. As U.S.-China trade tensions rise, the DRC could suffer.

On March 24, 2025, Republican Congressman Christopher Henry Smith introduced a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives to block cobalt refined in China from entering the U.S. market. Smith claims that cobalt processed in China is tied to child and forced labor in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).  As of March 30, 2025, the H.R.2310 bill was not online.

In December 2023, Smith proposed a similar measure that failed to advance before the November 2024 elections. That earlier bill, whichthe Ecofin Agency consulted, aimed to sever U.S. ties with supply chains linked to cobalt mined under exploitative conditions in the DRC and refined in China.

Known as the H.R. 6909 bill or the "Cobalt Restriction Act," the draft law targets reports of poor working conditions and human rights abuses in DRC mines. It seeks to ban products containing cobalt refined in China unless proven not to originate from the DRC.

The U.S. has previously flagged Congolese cobalt for its labor issues. In September 2024, the Department of Labor added it to its list of products made with child labor. However, this latest bill comes amid worsening U.S.-China relations, with China controlling over 80% of global refined cobalt supplies.

This proposal sparks a crucial question: does it truly aim to combat child labor, or does it mainly seek to limit China's dominance over Congolese cobalt? Besides refining, China also controls several cobalt mines in the DRC. Since 2023,  the Chinese group CMOC has become the world’s top cobalt producer thanks to its Tenke Fungurume and Kisanfu mines in the DRC. 

While independent reports confirm child labor in artisanal mining, accounting for 15-30% of DRC’s cobalt production, most production is managed by industrial operators.

This article was initially published in French by Emiliano Tossou

Edited in English by Ola Schad Akinocho