It is reported that growing tensions among shareholders of Tenke Fungurume Mining SA, one of the largest copper and cobalt producers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, could lead to court-appointed regulators to prevent its exports of copper and cobalt.

According to four letters sent to a Congolese tax agency and three export agencies, they are trying to solve the problem.$China Molybdenum (03993.HK) $(CMOC Group Ltd.) during a royalty dispute with its state-owned mining company Gecamines, Sage Ngoie Mbayo, the chief executive, has ordered a moratorium on exports over the past week, but that will take some time to take effect.

China Molybdenum responded that Ngoie had no right to stop exporting. Vincent Zhou, a spokesman for its Tenke, said in an email reply on Friday that Tenke "has been under the legal and effective control of the management team nominated by CMOC." "production and operation, including transportation and export, are very normal."

Tenke is one of the most important sources of cobalt in the world, and the long-term suspension of exports could have a significant impact on the market. Cobalt is a key component of electric vehicle batteries. The mine accounted for about 14 per cent of the world's cobalt production last year, according to data. According to China's molybdenum industry, the mine produced 209100 tons of copper and 18500 tons of cobalt in 2021, and the company plans to produce as much as 267000 tons of copper and 20500 tons of cobalt in 2022.

Gecamines owns 20 per cent of the Tenke project. The company said China's molybdenum industry had been "lack of transparency" in its mineral reserves, owing the company $7.6 billion in royalties and interest. The state-owned miner filed a lawsuit last year to appoint an interim manager to manage the mine while resolving differences. Last month, Ngoie took over Tenke with Gecamines's consent, but China Molybdenum prevented him from entering the mine.

"No one has the right to interfere with the operation of TFM," Zhou said. "the letter from the so-called interim manager, without the approval of TFM's general meeting and board of directors, is not binding on TFM and does not represent the will of TFM to external parties."

The company said it reserved "the right to pursue legal liability against relevant personnel".

Ngoie's office issued a statement saying that due to the complexity of the export system, it is impossible to stop immediately, but as the differences between the two sides have not been properly resolved, the world will soon see a complete stop of TFM exports.

China Molybdenum has previously said it agreed to the government's proposal to hire an internationally recognized third party to conduct an assessment to finally resolve the additional royalty issue. Sun Ruiwen, executive director of the company, said: "this will help speed up the settlement of disputes within the scope of the contract agreement and further enhance our confidence in investing in the Democratic Republic of the Congo."