Post #232

🇬🇳Sweet Dreams Are Made of Iron Will Guinea become Africa's industrial giant? 🌍 Just one month before the presidential election, Guinea's Ministry of Mines is once again speaking of ambitious plans to create industrial capacity - including up to 7 million tons of aluminum per year by 2030, plus an iron processing plant at the Simandou complex. "We are the biggest bauxite producer in the world now… but we don't have any refineries built since colonial times... This will change" 🔸 Back in 2022-2023, the country decided to rectify this injustice and required all bauxite producers to submit projects and begin construction of aluminum plants by 2027. So far the first such plant, built with the support of the Chinese state-owned company SPIC, should be completed by the end of 2027. ⏩On the other hand, the Chinese are in no hurry to share their iron. Just a few days ago, the country ceremoniously opened the world's largest high-grade iron ore deposit in Simandou, whose developers were initially also required to build a steel plant within the country. But the Chinese refused, so the government now has to settle for promises from operators to study the possibility of building such a plant. Guinea is trying to move from exporting raw ore to manufacturing on its own territory, and this path depends on a reliable energy supply, predictable rules, and the state's ability to balance pressure on foreign mining groups with the need for long-term investment. Devils Below