DR CONGO · MINING
Key Facts
—What happened Congo’s subcontracting regulator ordered two Glencore-controlled mines to drop 1,540 ineligible suppliers.
—The mines Kamoto Copper Company and Mutanda Mining, both in the country’s copper and cobalt belt.
—The arithmetic Of 2,560 suppliers examined, 1,540 were found ineligible, or about 60 percent.
—The deadline Both companies have 30 days to submit a corrective plan.
—The interim ban Neither may award new contracts to the listed suppliers until the position is regularised.
—The law behind it A 2017 statute reserves subcontracting work in Congo for companies majority-owned by Congolese nationals.
Sixty percent of the suppliers checked at two mines failed the test, and the mines have thirty days to answer.
The Kamoto copper mine at Kolwezi, one of the two operations ordered to act
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The Democratic Republic of Congo’s subcontracting regulator has ordered two Glencore-controlled mines to drop 1,540 suppliers. It found them ineligible under the country’s subcontracting law.
What the Regulator Ordered
The authority for the regulation of subcontracting in the private sector examined supplier lists at two mines. It ordered both to drop the companies it found ineligible.
At Kamoto Copper Company, 1,427 suppliers were examined and 955 found ineligible, leaving 472 eligible. At Mutanda Mining, 1,133 were examined and 585 found ineligible, leaving 548.
The Scale of It
The two totals together make 2,560 suppliers examined and 1,540 found ineligible. That is about 60 percent of those checked.
A finding at that level is not a compliance detail. It describes a supply chain that the regulator considers largely outside the law.
What the Law Requires
A statute of 8 February 2017 reserves subcontracting work in Congo for companies majority-owned by Congolese nationals. The aim is to keep a share of mining spending inside the domestic economy.
Enforcement has been uneven since. The regulator formally resumed inspections by a decision of 12 June 2026.
Which Contracts Were Examined
The inspections covered contracts awarded between 2020 and 2025. That is a five-year window rather than a snapshot.
Reviewing historical awards is what produces numbers this large. A check of current contracts alone would find far fewer.
What the Companies Must Do
Both have 30 days to submit a corrective plan. It must name the affected firms, give reasons for each termination and set out how eligible subcontractors will be given access.
Until the position is regularised, neither may award new contracts to the listed suppliers. That is an immediate operational constraint rather than a future penalty.
Who Owns the Mines
Both are described as Glencore subsidiaries. Kamoto Copper Company is 75 percent Glencore and 25 percent Gecamines, the Congolese state mining company.
That state stake matters for how the case reads. The government is a shareholder in one of the two companies being ordered to act.
Not the First Such Action
The regulator ordered contract cancellations at the Kibali gold mine, operated by Barrick, in February 2026. The pattern is one of action against large foreign-operated mines.
Its director general, Juan Ted Beleshayi Kasanda, took over around June 2026. This is the most significant enforcement action under his tenure.
Why Subcontracting Is the Battleground
Mining companies buy far more than they extract. Transport, catering, security, maintenance and construction account for a large share of what a mine spends locally.
Rules that reserve that spending for domestic firms are how governments try to keep value in the country. Enforcement determines whether they mean anything.
What It Means for Suppliers
For the 1,540 companies named, the immediate consequence is the loss of a customer. Many will be small firms dependent on a single mine.
For Congolese-owned firms, the same order is an opening. Whether they can absorb the work is the question the corrective plans will have to answer.
What Is Not Yet Known
The regulator has not published the list of affected suppliers. Nor has it said what happens if a corrective plan is judged inadequate.
Neither company has responded publicly. Glencore has not commented on the order.
What to Watch
Whether the corrective plans are submitted within the 30 days. That deadline is the first test of the order.
Watch also for whether operations are disrupted. Replacing 60 percent of a supplier base is not a paperwork exercise.
More: Africa news and analysis, every day from The Rio Times.
Frequently Asked Questions
What did the regulator order?
That Kamoto Copper Company and Mutanda Mining drop 1,540 suppliers found ineligible under Congo’s subcontracting law.
How many suppliers were checked?
2,560 in total: 1,427 at Kamoto and 1,133 at Mutanda.
Who owns the mines?
Both are Glencore-controlled. Kamoto Copper Company is 75 percent Glencore and 25 percent Gecamines, the state mining company.
What is the deadline?
Thirty days to submit a corrective plan.
What does the law require?
A 2017 statute reserves subcontracting work for companies majority-owned by Congolese nationals.
Has the regulator acted before?
Yes. It ordered contract cancellations at the Barrick-operated Kibali gold mine in February 2026.
Sources: Decisions of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s subcontracting regulator reported on 16 and 17 September 2026; Congolese law 17/001 of 8 February 2017.