China is switching its investment focus in Africa from oil to minerals
- Beijing has more options on where to source its crude these days, but is still reliant on Africa for its copper, cobalt and other rare minerals, analyst says
- A ‘substantial part of the Congolese mining sector … is now in Chinese hands’, report says
During his trip to Kinshasa in January, Wang promised that Beijing would write off loans to the Central African nation worth about US$28 million to help it deal with the impact of Covid-19 and provide US$17 million in other financial support.
He said also that China would fund infrastructure projects in the DRC, as it became the 45th country to sign up to the Belt and Road Initiative, Beijing’s grand plan to boost interconnectivity and trade around the world.
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While China is still the world’s largest oil importer, the availability of crude from the Middle East – whose shipments would traditionally have gone to the US but no longer do because of sanctions – means it is no longer heavily reliant on African suppliers, analysts say.
But what Beijing does still need from Africa is copper, cobalt and other rare minerals, according to Mark Bohlund, a senior analyst at REDD Intelligence.