China’s Xuzhou Construction Machinery Group (XCMG) has signed an agreement with Rio Tinto’s Simfer to supply equipment for its giant, untapped Simandou iron ore project in Guinea, the Chinese company said on Wednesday.
China’s leading construction machinery manufacturer, headquartered in east region of Xuzhou city, will provide core mining equipment with a total value of nearly 800 million yuan ($111.91 million), including dozens of 230-metric ton mining trucks, for the Simandou project, the company said in a post on its WeChat account.
The project in southeast Guinea, which is seen as key to the green transition in the global steel value chain, has been the subject of prolonged negotiations due to its complex ownership structure, delays caused by legal wrangling, political upheaval in the African country and difficulties with construction.
It is set to be the world’s largest and highest grade new iron ore mine, with an annual production capacity of 120 million metric tons, with output now expected to start in 2025.
Simfer is a joint venture between Rio Tinto, Chalco Iron Ore Holdings and the government of Guinea.
($1 = 7.1484 Chinese yuan)
(Reporting by Amy Lv and Mei Mei Chu; Editing by Kim Coghill)
