China looks to Guinea’s vast Simandou iron ore mine to secure supply

Mine said to have world’s largest untapped high-quality reserve but has remained undeveloped because there is no railway line to transport the ore

Baowu, China’s biggest iron and steel producer, is among those investing in the project at a time when the country is trying to diversify its supply

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The mine project is located in the Simandou mountain range, in southern Guinea’s Nzérékoré region. Photo: Rio Tinto

Published: 6:00pm, 8 Jan 2023

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.

Workers make iron bars at a steel factory in eastern China. Photo: AFP

While the commercial-scale reserves of high-grade iron ore were confirmed back in 2002, the Simandou mine has remained undeveloped because there is no railway line to transport the ore from the remote corner of Guinea to the sea for export.