KoBold Metals, the mining company backed by US billionaires Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates, has signed an agreement with the Democratic Republic of Congo that positions the US firm to acquire the contested Manono lithium deposit and launch large-scale critical mineral exploration, it said on Friday.

The deal represents a dramatic escalation in the battle for Manono in northern Congo, considered one of the world's largest lithium deposits, crucial for electric vehicle batteries. 

Australian-based AVZ Minerals has been locked in a prolonged legal dispute with Congo's government over mining rights. KoBold's agreement effectively positions the California-based firm as Congo's preferred partner to resolve the impasse and develop the resource. 

DRC President Félix Tshisekedi confirmed the deal in a social media post. AVZ could not be immediately reached for comment.

The deal was signed by Congo's mines minister and KoBold's local director on Thursday, but was announced on Friday. 

It commits the Congolese government to support KoBold's initiative to buy and develop the Roche Dure lithium deposit located at Manono and resolve disputes that have delayed the project's development, according to the agreement.

AVZ initially held the permit to develop the Manono project, but in 2023, the DRC's Mines Ministry revoked this permit on the basis that the project had not advanced quickly enough. The rights were later granted to a unit of Zijin Mining, prompting AVZ to seek relief through the International Court of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce and the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes.

KoBold must apply for exploration licenses covering more than 1,600 square km (618 square miles) before July 31, while the central African nation will appoint an envoy to facilitate the Manono acquisition by the same deadline.

"KoBold Metals shall initiate a large-scale mineral exploration program in the DRC, using the world's most advanced technology to find deposits of critical minerals," the agreement states.

KoBold says it uses artificial intelligence to locate copper, cobalt, nickel, and lithium deposits.

The deal comes after President Donald Trump brokered a deal in June to stop fighting in mineral-rich eastern Congo in return for Western investments. The deal supports the US Lobito corridor initiative aimed at creating secure supply chains and reducing Chinese dominance in critical minerals.

KoBold will also digitise geological records at the Royal Museum of Central Africa and provide free public access to historic geoscientific data through Congo's National Geological Service, the agreement states.