International Milestone! Investment Cooperation Agreement for The Northern Block of Simandou Iron Ore Project Signed

China has always been a big iron consumer. Whether it is building high-rise buildings, laying railways, or making cars and ships, iron ore is indispensable. But the embarrassing thing is that although we have discovered a lot of iron ore reserves, the quality of these ores is so poor that people can't praise them. The iron content is low and there are many impurities. It takes a lot of money and effort to purify them after mining, and the cost is frighteningly high. Therefore, since 2000, China's iron ore imports have soared. By 2024, the import volume has exceeded 1.1 billion tons, accounting for 80% of our iron ore demand. In other words, eight out of ten pieces of iron ore we use are bought from abroad.

The Simandou iron ore mine is located in Guinea in western Africa and is known as the world's largest undeveloped iron ore mine. How amazing are the reserves of this iron ore mine? 4.4 billion tons, almost one-fifth of China's current reserves. More importantly, the Simandou iron ore mine has a high iron content and low mining costs, making it a top student in the iron ore industry. Unfortunately, Guinea is an economically underdeveloped country with no technology or funds to develop this "treasure mountain" and can only wait for powerful countries to cooperate.

From 2019 to 2024, China's iron ore project in Guinea has experienced many twists and turns. The price war, public opinion war and even political pressure in the international market have come one after another, with the aim of making China back down from this cooperation. But China did not give in. While continuing to advance the negotiations, it increased its investment in Guinea's infrastructure construction, such as building railways and ports, helping Guinea lay the foundation for economic development. This "iron" cooperation eventually made Guinea firmly choose China.

July 16, 2024, this day is destined to be recorded in the history of China's iron ore industry. On this day, China officially won the development rights of Guinea's Simandou iron ore mine, and the project entered the substantive mining stage. As soon as this news came out, the entire international iron ore market was shaken.

Information sources：http://www.csteelnews.cn/qypd/qydt/202309/t20230908_79224.html