Colonel Mamady Doumbouya, the head of Guinea’s ruling junta, has “set” a 14-day deadline for the formation of a joint venture to exploit a massive iron ore deposit, according to Guinean state television RTG.
Three months ago, the Guinean state, Anglo-Australian Rio Tinto Simfer, and Winning Consortium Simandou inked a 35-year tripartite deal with the goal of exploiting the Simandou site (south-east), one of the world’s greatest iron resources.
The deal calls for the construction of a 670-kilometer railway to connect the mining corridor to a mineral port south of Conakry on the Guinean coast. They’re expected to be finished in December 2024. The first commercial production will begin on March 31, 2025.
“We see a disconnect between your perspective of how the framework agreement’s conditions should be implemented and our expectations. For the Guinean state, this scenario is not just regrettable, but also unacceptable “At the weekend, the junta’s leader expressed his displeasure.
“I expect the formation of the joint venture within fourteen days to move forward efficiently,” he told the leaders of the two mining behemoths during a meeting in Conakry on Friday.
For years, the operation has been hindered by disagreements over mining rights, allegations of corruption, and the size of the investment required in a landlocked location with severely deficient infrastructure.
Several thousand direct jobs will be created as a result of the project.
The government members were also received by the junta’s leader on Saturday and presented the first report on their month-long tour of the country’s interior, according to RTG.
“It is necessary to state that the news is painful. We had a general idea of what Guinea was like, but the news is much more violent “Prime Minister Mohamed Béavogui stated.
“We observed a Guinea inside where, for the most part, the state was absent. There was no governance, and there were no state clerks… The men have vanished, the means have vanished, and the systems have vanished “He went on to say that the infrastructure was very inadequate, if not non-existent.
Guinea’s Prime Minister promised a report with “specific” ideas “in the coming days.”
In September 2021, Colonel Doumbouya was installed as president following a military coup. Within three years, he has promised to pass over authority to civilians elected by the people.
