(Yicai) Aug. 6 -- A Chinese industry body has denied media reports that cobalt produced by Chinese-funded companies in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has contained excessive quantities of uranium.

Following a thorough review, none of the cobalt products -- whether mined, processed, or exported -- by Chinese-funded businesses operating normally in the southeastern DRC exceed the legal limits for uranium content, the Association of Chinese-funded Mining Enterprises in the Democratic Republic of the Congo said in a statement yesterday.

Recent reports circulating on the internet and within industry channels regarding excessive uranium content are untrue, it said, adding that the reports mislead market perceptions, disrupt the industry’s normal order, and negatively impact the reputation of Chinese mining companies in the central African country and the international trade reputation of their cobalt products.

The Financial Times published an investigative report on July 30, stating that between 2016 and 2020, cobalt products produced by Tenke Fungurume Mining, a DRC-based subsidiary of Chinese mining giant CMOC Group, exceeded the legal uranium content limit on multiple occasions.

The report was a joint initiative between the Financial Times and the non-profit investigative organization Lighthouse Reports. On Aug. 2, CMOC responded, stating that none of the products sold by its subsidiary exceeded uranium content limits. The company also noted that it has never faced customs seizures, customer rejections, or complaints regarding the uranium content of its cobalt products.

The Luoyang-based firm added that it has established a quality control and radiation detection system covering the entire production chain, which enables monitoring of product quality and ensures the traceability of outcomes throughout the industrial production process.

Regarding the historical data on the alleged high concentrations of uranium in wet cobalt cited by the report's authors, CMOC stated that it was unaware of the source of this information and therefore cannot verify its reliability.

Editor: Tom Litting