U.S. Firms Orion and Virtus in Talks to Acquire Congo’s Chemaf Resources as Global Cobalt Race Heats Up
A U.S.-based consortium, including former special forces and intelligence veterans, is in advanced talks to acquire Chemaf Resources Ltd., a copper and cobalt producer at the heart of intensifying U.S.-China competition over critical minerals in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
According to sources familiar with the matter, Orion Resource Partners and Virtus Minerals are jointly negotiating the acquisition of Chemaf, which is currently backed by global commodity trader Trafigura Group.
While the U.S. firms are leading the bid, no exclusivity agreement has been signed, and several deal components are still under negotiation.
The discussions underscore the United States’ renewed efforts—accelerated under former President Donald Trump and continuing under the Biden administration—to increase American involvement in Congo’s mineral-rich landscape.
The DRC is the world’s largest source of cobalt and the second-largest producer of copper, both of which are essential for electric vehicle batteries and other green technologies.
Chemaf, owned by businessman Shiraz Virji, has struggled to fund its flagship Mutoshi project and put itself up for sale nearly two years ago.
In June 2024, it announced a deal with a subsidiary of Chinese state-owned Norinco Group, which would have repaid creditors in full.
However, the agreement collapsed in March after Congolese authorities withheld approvals, partly due to objections from Gecamines, the state mining company that controls the key mining permit for Mutoshi.
U.S. officials had also lobbied President Felix Tshisekedi’s government to block the Chinese transaction.
Whether Gecamines would support a sale to the U.S. consortium remains uncertain. The state miner submitted its own offer for Chemaf’s assets in late 2023 but declined to comment on the ongoing negotiations.
Orion Resource Partners, headquartered in New York, is a major investor in the global mining industry, managing approximately $8 billion in assets.
Virtus Minerals, which operates in the DRC through its local subsidiary ROK Metals, is run by former U.S. military and intelligence professionals with expertise in securing mineral supply chains.
According to its website, Virtus is led by President Gregory Roberts, a former CIA officer and advisor to the U.S.
House Intelligence Committee, and Managing Director Phil Braun, a current Green Beret with the National Guard’s 20th Special Forces Group.
If the deal proceeds, Orion is expected to provide the capital while Virtus manages operations. Details on the acquisition price have not been disclosed, and it remains unclear whether Chemaf’s creditors—still owed around $900 million—will be fully repaid.
Chemaf, despite producing modest volumes of copper and cobalt, holds dozens of promising exploration permits across Congo.
Its Mutoshi project, once completed, is expected to become one of the world’s largest cobalt mines, designed to produce 16,000 tonnes of cobalt and 50,000 tonnes of copper annually.
In 2022, Trafigura arranged a $600 million syndicated loan to fund upgrades to Chemaf’s Etoile site and the construction of Mutoshi.
Participating lenders included the Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank. Trafigura declined to comment on the current negotiations.
Meanwhile, the U.S. is working to strengthen diplomatic and commercial ties with Congo, including brokering peace talks between Kinshasa and Rwanda over regional conflicts.
President Tshisekedi also revealed that Congo is close to finalizing a strategic agreement with the U.S. focused on key mineral resources, including cobalt, copper, lithium, and tantalum.
This potential acquisition could mark a pivotal moment in U.S. efforts to secure critical minerals for the energy transition and reduce reliance on Chinese-dominated supply chains.
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