Alphamin restarts Bisie tin mine as M23 rebels pull back from Walikale

Alphamin Resources announced a phased resumption of mining at its Bisie tin operation in Walikale district, North Kivu province, in April 2025, after Rwanda-backed M23 rebels withdrew roughly 130km east of the site toward Nyabiondo and Masisi. The company had suspended all operations on 13 March 2025 as the insurgents advanced, halting a mine that supplies about 6% of global tin production.

Diplomacy behind the restart

US Africa adviser Massad Boulos said his visit to the region was partly aimed at supporting a resumption of mining at Alphamin's Congolese operations. According to sources cited by Reuters, the US government pressed the rebels, during negotiations that also involved the DRC and Rwanda, to withdraw about 150km from the mine — a request the insurgents' subsequent movement broadly matched.

Output lost, but not the year

Alphamin had produced 4,270 tonnes of contained tin in the first quarter of 2025 before the 13 March shutdown, meaning the roughly month-long halt cost the company valuable production days during a period of strong tin prices. Shares in the Toronto- and Johannesburg-listed miner rallied sharply once the resumption was confirmed, reflecting investor relief that the highest-grade tin mine in production had avoided a prolonged closure.

A mine in a conflict zone

Bisie's vulnerability to the ebb and flow of fighting in eastern DRC has become a recurring feature of Alphamin's operating environment, with the M23 insurgency having displaced hundreds of thousands of people across North Kivu since re-emerging in 2021. The mine's remote, defensible location has previously helped shield it from some of the worst effects of regional instability, but March 2025 demonstrated how quickly that protection can be tested.

Why it matters for the tin market

Given Bisie's outsized share of global tin supply, any prolonged suspension has the potential to move international tin prices, underscoring why the mine's swift reopening in April 2025 was watched closely by electronics manufacturers and metals traders far beyond Central Africa.

Sources

• MINING.COM: Alphamin to resume Congo tin mine, shares rally, 17 Apr 2025
• The EastAfrican: US firm Alphamin resumes tin mining in M23 zone after Boulos visit, 18 Apr 2025

Photo: Walikale, the district in North Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo, near Alphamin's Bisie tin mine. MONUSCO/Sylvain Liechti, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0.