Another "Simandou-level" iron ore project is expected to commence production by the end of the year!

Recently, African media reported that the cross-border, world-class iron ore resource of the Mbalam-Nabeba Iron Ore Project, located between Congo Republic and Cameroon in Africa, is expected to commence production in December 2025, with the supporting railway construction to start simultaneously.

The Mbalam-Nabeba Iron Ore Project is situated on the border between Cameroon and Congo Republic, with Mbalam located in Cameroon and Nabeba in Congo Republic. According to a 2015 exploration report, the iron ore reserves of this mine are estimated at 5.64 billion mt (mainly hematite, with a grade of 33.4%), including 805 million mt of high-grade iron ore (with a grade of 57.3%), making it a world-class large-scale high-quality open-pit iron ore mine.

According to the latest information, the total iron ore resources of the entire Mbalam-Nabeba Project exceed 6.44 billion mt. Among them, the mining areas in Congo Republic cover three ore deposits: the Nabeba Iron Ore Mine, the Avima Iron Ore Mine, and the Badondo Iron Ore Mine, with estimated iron ore reserves of 1.5 billion mt, 1.4 billion mt, and 679 million mt, respectively.

On August 17, 2022, Cameroon Mining Company Sarl (CMC) obtained the mining license for the Mbalam Iron Ore Mine. Bestway Finance, an investment vehicle headquartered in Singapore that shares the same parent company as CMC, and the Australian publicly listed firm AustSino Resources announced a joint development of this project.

Behind these two shareholders is a large number of Chinese engineering, construction, infrastructure, or mining companies, including China Railway 20th Bureau Group Corporation, China Machinery Engineering Corporation, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation, China National Chemical Engineering Heavy Machinery Co., Ltd., and China Construction Mining Group Co., Ltd., among others.

On May 7, 2024, representatives from Bestway Finance and representatives from the Cameroonian government, including Professor Fuh Calistus Gentry, the interim Minister of Mines, Industry, and Technological Development, signed the development agreement for the Mbalam Iron Ore Mine.

Driven by the upcoming production of the Simandou Project in Guinea, it may bring greater impetus and stimulation to this world-class project in Cameroon. Let's wait and see for the official commencement of production at the end of the year!