Investing in African Mining is now in its third day.
Speaking on one of the panels this Wednesday, February 5, 2025, John Woto, Deputy Managing Director of Tenke Fungurume (TFM), explained to participants the major achievements of this mining company, proving its model of responsible mining for a better world.
Tenke Fungurume Mining SA (TFM SA) is one of the world’s largest producers of copper and cobalt, with mines and processing facilities located in the African copper belt in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
According to John Woto, TFM’s responsible mining approach is demonstrated by a number of achievements:
1° TFM is the first company in Africa to have obtained The Copper Mark certification for the year 2024. This certification recognizes the company’s responsible production practices.
Indeed, The Copper Mark is a leading assurance framework launched in 2020 to meet the growing international demand for responsible sourcing and production, and to promote responsible practices throughout the copper, molybdenum, nickel and zinc value chains.
The Copper Mark verifies that each facility meets the requirements of responsible production practices. These requirements cover all major environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues.
2° TFM, the first company to have inspired the introduction of the allocation of 0.3% of each mining company’s sales to local communities. Even before the Mining Code introduced this law, TFM had already initiated the “DOT TFM ‘m’ or TFM endowment.
Among the projects assigned to these specifications was the construction of a
200 m3 water tower with a 207 m deep well that will be connected to the existing network; the fight against epidemics; the distribution of 120,000 2nd generation mosquito nets to combat malaria; capacity-building for healthcare personnel in the Fungurume health zone. In addition, 4.3 km of double-layer road have been laid in Fungurume. Finally, the project to build a Higher Institute of Applied Techniques and a 200-bed general referral hospital.
He also stressed that TFM is working with the commune of Fungurume and the provincial mining authority to allocate this money to projects for the well-being of the population.
3° In January 2024, on the occasion of International Customs Day 2024 held in Kinshasa, the World Customs Organization awarded Tenke FungurumeMining S.A the Certificate of Merit for outstanding services to the international customs community. TFM was qualified as the economic operator having paid the highest amount of duties and taxes during the year 2023. By paying duties and taxes and other contributions to the Congolese state, TFM has made a massive contribution to the country’s growth.
4° In terms of employment, TFM has so far created nearly 20,000 direct and indirect jobs, with the emphasis on local workers.
As for the outlook for 2025, John Woto announced that TFM is counting on the optimization of existing operations to boost production. TFM already has a plant with a daily capacity of 10,000 tons, another of 11,000 tons, and others of 15,000 tons and 30,000 tons respectively.
Nadine FULA