M23 and its allies continued their advance, seizing the localities of Busoro and Kaanja late last night in the Masisi territory.
The operations took place approximately 154 kilometers from the headquarters of Alpha Mine, one of the world’s first companies to industrially exploit cassiterite.
The company has long been a benchmark in transforming a resource once gathered by artisanal miners into a high-volume industrial commodity.
Cassiterite, the primary ore of tin, is integral to numerous industrial applications from electronics and soldering to the manufacturing of various alloys ensuring its position as a strategic resource in global markets with the DRC as critical supplier..
The company’s early adoption of industrial-scale processing methods allowed it to secure a substantial market share, a feat that continues to resonate in today’s environment of fluctuating commodity prices and heightened geopolitical risks.