Why Chinese interest is soaring in West African Guinea’s Simandou iron ore reserves
- The Simandou range in southeastern Guinea is home to the world’s largest known undeveloped reserves of high-grade iron ore
- The vast deposits hold both economic and geopolitical significance for China, as it seeks resource security and less dependence on Australia
Simandou, a 110km (68 mile) mountain range in the inland forests of southeastern Guinea, is home to the world’s largest known undeveloped reserve of high-grade iron ore, with a projected annual production capacity of 120 million tonnes.
The vast deposits have drawn Chinese multinationals including the world’s largest steel producer China Baowu, which recently signed a deal to develop two blocks of the Simandou mine.
As China’s economy slows, it has become very selective in funding projects under its multinational Belt and Road Initiative. But the construction industry – which consumes massive amounts of steel and aluminium – still gets most of the financing.
Others on the list were the Kamoa copper and cobalt mine in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), from where China sources most of its cobalt for making electric vehicle batteries, and the Kururi potash mine project in Eritrea.
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