Africa Review reported that the DR Congo government has confident that the production of copper from its Sicomines JV will start in 2015, two years ahead of schedule.

Congolese miner Gecamines, China‘s Sinohydro and the China Railway Group Limited are part of the venture.

Mr Moise Ekanga the coordinator of the Sino Congolese Cooperation Agreement said that the first tonne of copper would be produced earlier than the projected 2017. Output would start at an initial 50,000 tonnes annually and gradually rise to 400,000 tonnes over the next 2 decades.

In 2008 the DRC government transferred the mining rights and titles covering the deposits of Dikuluwe and Mashamba to the JV Sicomines Sarl in exchange for funds mobilized by the consortium of Chinese companies to improve infrastructure.

The Chinese companies own 62% of the shares in the venture while the state owned Congolese miner owns the rest. Of the USD 6 billion funds to be sourced, USD 3 billion is expected to be used in the construction of roads, dams, hospitals and schools under the infrastructure project while the rest would be invested in the development of mines under the mining project.

Mr Ekanga revealed that the amount of copper deposits has since been revised by a third to 6.8 million tonnes. He clarified that the government had not signed away the mineral deposits to the Chinese but rather under the agreement given entitlement to the Sicomines Sarl to look for funds whose reimbursement would be based on the mining revenues.

He said that the cooperation agreement was designed in such a way to reduce the financial burden for the country, if by the end of the 25 years the loans would not have been paid off we will sit and find other ways to settle the debts.