Sec. 2. Findings
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Congress finds the following: Cobalt is an essential component of lithium-ion batteries, which are predominantly used for electric vehicles, smartphones, and laptops, among other electronic devices. According to the International Energy Agency, the world is expected to see a 40-fold increase in lithium demand and a 20-fold increase in cobalt demand by 2040, as the demand for electric vehicles is expected to grow significantly during this period. In 2021, global sales of electric vehicles doubled compared to 2020, reaching its new record of 6.6 million, and bringing the total number of electric vehicles in use to 16.5 million electric vehicles by the end of 2021.
The People’s Republic of China ( PRC ) accounted for half of those sales, with over 150 percent growth in electric vehicle sales in that country compared to 2020. In the first quarter of 2022, an additional 2 million electric vehicles were sold worldwide, showing strong continued growth. While Europe and the United States saw increased sales, the PRC experienced an unprecedented tripling of electric vehicle sales of 3.3 million in 2022, accounting for approximately one-half of the global sales.
The concentration of global cobalt supply and production in the Democratic Republic of the Congo ( DRC ) as well as civil unrest and governmental corruption, heighten the vulnerabilities and risks of global supply chain disruptions. More than one-half of the world’s cobalt resources are in the DRC, which supplies approximately 70 percent of the global cobalt mine production in 2021. The DRC remains beset by conflicts and pervasive official corruption. Firms based in the PRC hold a dominant position in DRC’s cobalt sector, according to the White House.
On the foundation of an unstable state, more than one-half of lithium and cobalt global supplies are processed and refined in the PRC, where more than 75 percent of all lithium-ion batteries are produced. About 50 percent of all batteries are for consumption in the PRC. Lithium deposits have been identified in the DRC, with exploration ongoing. It is estimated that the DRC can begin lithium production as early as 2023. Approximately 15 to 30 percent of cobalt produced in the DRC comes from artisanal and small-scale mining.
An estimated 255,000 miners work in artisanal and small-scale mining in the DRC, of whom at least 40,000 are children. The child miners in the DRC, some as young as 6 years of age, working in artisanal and small-scale mines, are subjected to the worst forms of forced manual labor. They work in harsh and life-threatening conditions, and are vulnerable to physical injuries, coercion, and abuse in addition to exposure to harmful toxins. Amnesty International reported in 2016 that child miners in the DRC’s cobalt sector worked for up to 12 hours a day in the mines without the most basic protective gear, such as gloves and face masks which would protect them from lung and skin disease.
Many children reportedly worked for prolonged periods underground, including at sites with inadequate ventilation and a high risk of fatal mineshaft collapse. Child miners interviewed by Amnesty International reported working for up to 12 hours a day in the mines, carrying heavy loads and being paid less than two dollars per day. According to a tally by Amnesty International, based on news reports, at least 80 underground miners working in artisanal and small-scale mining died in southeastern DRC between September 2014 and December 2015.
Amnesty International assessed that the true figure is unknown as many accidents go unrecorded and bodies are left buried in the rubble . To this day, there is no official tally of the total number of such deaths. As of 2020, 15 of the 19 cobalt mines in the DRC were owned or financed by PRC companies. The 5 biggest PRC-owned mining companies in the DRC have lines of credit from PRC state-owned banks totaling $124 billion. China Molybdenum, a PRC mining and trading company, is the second-largest producer of cobalt worldwide.
In 2016, it purchased Tenke Fungurume, which controlled one of the largest cobalt reserves in the world. More than $1.59 billion of the $2.65 billion came from loans from PRC state-owned banks. Under PRC ownership of mining companies in the DRC, there has been reportedly a significant rise in serious injuries. There are questions regarding proper oversight of safety in the mines, as well as coverups of deaths and injuries. In July 2021, PRC mining company managers in Kolwezi ordered the brutal beating and whipping of miners.
On July 14, 2022, the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, a bipartisan congressional commission, held a hearing on Child Labor and Human Rights Violations in the Mining Industry of the Democratic Republic of Congo . The hearing highlighted the concerns of child and forced labor in the DRC, the disregard of worker safety, and environmental degradation. It also highlighted PRC domination of strategic metals and minerals in the global supply chain. In the 2022 Trafficking in Persons Report, the Department of State emphasized that In the , noting further that DRC, artisanal and small-scale mining of cobalt has been associated with forced child labor and other abuses Since 2015, the TIP Report narratives on the DRC have highlighted forced labor of children in artisanal cobalt mines. .
The DRC is on the Tier 2 Watch List, and will be automatically downgraded to Tier 3, subjecting it to sanctions, if it does not substantively and consistently improve its record on trafficking. Section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 ( 19 U.S.C. 1307 ) states that it is illegal to import into the United States goods, wares, articles, and merchandise mined, produced, or manufactured wholly or in part by forced labor, including forced or indentured child labor. Such merchandise is subject to exclusion or seizure and may lead to criminal investigation of the importer.
On December 13, 2022, the Governments of the United States, DRC, and Zambia signed a memorandum of understanding with regard to United States support for the DRC and Zambia to develop jointly a supply chain for electric vehicle batteries, from the mine to the assembly line, while also committing to respect international standards to prevent, detect and take legal action to fight corruption throughout this process .
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