Produkcja kobaltu i jego rola w światowej geopolityce
Cobalt production and its role in global geopolitic

Summary/Abstract: Cobalt is a rare metal that is essential for the development of moderntechnology (including batteries, electronics, and renewable energy). Currently, mostmining and metallurgical companies producing cobalt are based in China. This situationraises serious concerns in Western countries about the security of supply, leading tocompetition between superpowers for access to cobalt resources. The area of thisrivalry is Katanga, a region in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where most of theworld's resources are concentrated. This article attempts to answer the question of thecircumstances and factors that enabled China to achieve a monopoly position in thecobalt market. In particular, it highlights the importance of Beijing's political programsaimed at expansion in Africa after 1999, the recession of the European colonial powers,and the political situation in Congo prior to 2019, which was favorable to China.Attention was also drawn to the tragic consequences of the expansion of Chinesemining and trading companies from the point of view of the local communities ofKatanga and the enormous ecological damage caused. The factual basis for the study isprovided by figures obtained from the websites of mining and resource managementinstitutions in conjunction with the results of exploration of maps and satellite imagesof Katanga. In conclusion, it was stated that the improvement of the situation inKatanga depends on a change in the attitude of the current authorities of theDemocratic Republic of Congo, and in particular on the end of the long-standing policyof plundering and transferring capital abroad, as well as on limiting China's monopoly,which will not be possible without the involvement of American capital. Developmentsin Katanga will undoubtedly determine the situation in global supply chains forstrategic raw materials, significantly influencing the future balance of power on a globalscale.

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