Operations have begun at the Simandou, Africa’s largest greenfield integrated mine and infrastructure project.
The President of the Republic of Guinea joined project partners Winning Consortium Simandou (WCS), Baowu, Chinalco and Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO) in a ceremony Tuesday at the port in Forécariah prefecture to mark the start of operations.
One of the most storied projects of recent decades, Simandou, tucked away in Guinea’s mountainous south, lay in a state of suspended animation for years. It is home to the world’s largest known untapped deposit of high-grade iron ore.
The project is now delivering more than 600 kilometres of new multi-use trans-Guinean rail together with barge and Transhipment Vessel port facilities.
Following commissioning and ramp up, this infrastructure will support the export of a combined total of up to 120 million tonnes per year of mined iron ore by SimFer and WCS from their respective Simandou mining concessions in the southeast of the country, Rio Tinto said in a news release.
Testing and commissioning of the mine, rail and barge port system infrastructure is underway, with both WCS and SimFer having commenced the transport of iron ore from mine gate to the port via the trans-Guinean rail line.
The project is being co-developed by the Guinean government, SimFer and WCS. Once commissioned, all infrastructure and rolling stock will be transferred to and operated by the Compagnie du TransGuinéen (CTG), in which Simfer and WCS each hold a 42.5% equity stake, with Guinea holding the remaining 15%.
“Simandou is more than a mining project: it is the driving force behind a national transformation,” Djiba Diakité, Minister and Chief of Staff to the President of the Republic, said in the release.
This collective success reflects the vision of the Head of State and the determination of an entire nation to build a future of shared prosperity,” Diakité continued. “This inauguration marks a foundational milestone for Guinea, which now stands as a key player in sustainable development and economic sovereignty in West Africa.”
“This outstanding achievement has been made possible through the dedicated hard work of thousands of our colleagues, and the complementary strengths and expertise of Rio Tinto, our SimFer partners, the Government of Guinea and Winning Consortium Simandou,” Rio Tinto CEO Simon Trott added.
“Today, we are unlocking an exceptional new source of high-grade iron ore that is in demand from customers for low-carbon steel making, enhancing our world-class portfolio of iron ore mines in the Pilbara and Canada.”
The Simandou project is divided into four blocks, with two controlled by Winning Consortium Simandou, backed by Chinese companies including China Baowu Steel Group, and two by Rio Tinto and Aluminum Corp. of China, also known as Chinalco.
WCS is a consortium of Singaporean company Winning International Group (45%), Weiqiao Aluminium (part of the China Hongqiao Group) (35%) and United Mining Suppliers International (20%). It is the holder of Simandou North block 1-2 (85% interest) and associated infrastructure.
Simfer SA is the holder of Simandou South Blocks 3 & 4, which is 15% owned by the Government of Guinea and 85% by a joint venture between Rio Tinto (53%) and a group of Chinese state-owned enterprises led by Chinalco (47%).
Source: MINING.COM – Read More
