China is making a bigger bet on the huge Simandou iron ore mine in Guinea, which it sees as crucial as it tries to reduce reliance on Australian ore amid geopolitical tensions.
The mine – located in the Simandou mountain range of southern Guinea’s Nzérékoré region – is said to have the world’s largest untapped iron ore reserve of high quality, with an estimated 2.4 billion tonnes. The deposits have drawn Chinese multinationals including China Baowu Steel Group, the country’s largest iron and steel producer.
In September, Baowu signed a deal with Société Minière de Boké (SMB)-Winning Consortium Simandou (WCS) to develop blocks 1 and 2 of the Simandou north project.
Singaporean shipowner Winning International Group, Chinese aluminium producer Shandong Weiqiao and the Guinean transport and logistics firm United Mining Suppliers International make up the consortium.
For the rest of this article: https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3205883/china-looks-guineas-vast-simandou-iron-ore-mine-secure-supply