Simandou mine
The Simandou mine is a very large, high-grade iron-ore deposit in the southern highlands of Guinea. Running along the crest of the Simandou range in the Nzérékoré Region, the project holds an estimated 2.4 billion tonnes of ore grading 65 percent iron, making it one of the largest untapped iron-ore resources in the world. Development has been delayed by ownership disputes, corruption allegations, and the need for a 622-kilometre railway and a deep-water port to reach the Atlantic coast. Commercial exports are scheduled to begin in 2025, nearly three decades after the first exploration licence was issued.
Geology and reserves
Simandou is hosted in metamorphosed banded-iron formations that were later enriched to hematite and hematite–goethite ore. Two principal lenses, Pic de Fon and Ouéléba, lie about four kilometres apart at the southern end of the range. Each lens extends roughly 7.5 kilometres and is up to one kilometre wide. Total reserves are estimated at 2.25–2.40 billion tonnes of high-grade ore.History
Rio Tinto obtained an exploration licence for Blocks 3 and 4 in 1997. In 2008 the Guinean government removed Blocks 1 and 2 from Rio Tinto and awarded them to Beny Steinmetz Group Resources, triggering more than a decade of litigation.In 2010 BSGR sold 51 percent of its Simandou interest to Vale for US$2.5 billion, but Guinea soon began investigating how the rights had been obtained. The government revoked BSGR’s licence in 2014; arbitration and civil cases followed on three continents, and a United States court dismissed Rio Tinto’s racketeering suit against BSGR and Vale in 2015. In February 2019 Guinea and BSGR settled their dispute; BSGR relinquished Simandou but retained an interest in the smaller Zogota deposit.
Corruption investigations
In April 2013 the Federal Bureau of Investigation arrested Frédéric Cilins, an agent for BSGR, after recordings suggested he had tried to destroy documents that might prove bribes were paid to secure the concession; he later pleaded guilty and was sentenced to two years in prison.Further controversy arose in 2016 when Rio Tinto disclosed a US$10.5 million payment to François de Combret, an adviser close to President Alpha Condé, made in 2011 while renegotiating its Simandou stake. The revelation prompted probes by the UK Serious Fraud Office, the United States Department of Justice, and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. In 2023 the SEC charged Rio Tinto with failing to maintain adequate anti-bribery controls.
Corporate affairs
Responsibility for the deposit is split between two project vehicles.- Simfer S.A. holds the mining title for Blocks 3 and 4. It is owned 45.05% by Rio Tinto, 39.95% by Chinalco and 15% by the Government of Guinea.
- Winning Consortium Simandou S.A. controls Blocks 1 and 2. WCS was incorporated in 2019 and is owned 45% by Singapore-based Winning International Group, 35% by China Hongqiao Group and 20% by the Guinean logistics firm United Mining Supply; in addition the Government of Guinea holds a free-carried 15% interest in the mining company.