La Compagnie de Traitement des Rejets de Kingamyambo S.A. (Metalkol SA), a subsidiary of Eurasian Resources Group (ERG) has announced that its site was recently awarded The Copper Mark, becoming the first ever mining tailings processing operation to achieve this recognition.
The award confirms that Metalkol’s operations meet internationally recognised environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards for responsible copper production. As one of the world’s largest standalone cobalt suppliers, Metalkol also produces this critical mineral under the same standards.
The Copper Mark is a leading voluntary third-party assurance framework that verifies responsible production practices across the copper, molybdenum, nickel, and zinc industries. It provides external validation of a site’s performance and aligns with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, the ILO Conventions, the Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management (GISTM), the OECD Minerals Guidance, and ICMM Principles.
Located in Lualaba Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Metalkol SA is a leading copper and cobalt producer specialising in the processing of historic mining tailings. Its operations support the sustainable recovery of minerals from the Musonoi River Basin and Kingamyambo, contributing to progressive environmental restoration and the economic and social development of local communities.
The framework evaluated Metalkol against 33 ESG criteria, including but not limited to:
- Environmental management including climate risk mitigation and tailings management.
- Governance, business integrity, and transparency.
- Human rights, health and safety labour practices, and working conditions.
- Transparent engagement with stakeholders, including communities.
This achievement forms part of a continuous performance improvement cycle with periodic reassessments. Valid for three years, it requires regular performance monitoring to ensure continued progress.
“This is the first tailings processing operation to earn The Copper Mark. Metalkol’s achievement underlines how our assurance framework can be successfully applied at diverse sites across the value chain”, said Michèle Brülhart, Executive Director of the Copper Mark.
Davron Vakhabov, CEO of ERG Africa, commented: “Obtaining The Copper Mark at Metalkol reflects our commitment to operating responsibly and transparently. For ERG Africa, producing copper and cobalt in accordance with global best practices is based on three essential principles: responsibility, traceability, and credibility at origin. This means focusing not only on where minerals come from, but also on how they are produced. Combined with recognised standards, independent audits, and a continuous improvement approach, these elements are essential to strengthening trust throughout the value chain.”
Leonid Tuzenko, ERG’s Head of Copper and Cobalt Sales, added: “Despite the challenging conditions in the cobalt market in 2024/25, achieving The Copper Mark certification for Metalkol demonstrates ERG’s long-term commitment to supporting our key customers across the entire value chain, including global battery manufacturers and electric vehicle producers, by providing them with responsibly and sustainably produced cobalt. The Copper Mark also helps to streamline ESG-related due diligence for customers in our established copper markets, including China, the Middle East, and Europe, while strengthening our access to the US market.”