China receives first shipment of Simandou iron ore

China, the world’s largest iron ore consumer, has received its first shipment of iron ore from the Simandou mine in Guinea in West Africa, in which Beijing has heavily invested to increase supply security.

China, which imports 80% of its iron ore from Australia and Brazil, has been attempting to diversify its supply by expanding domestic output and investing in overseas mines.

A vessel carrying nearly 200,000 metric tons of iron ore from Simandou arrived in Majishan port in East China’s Zhejiang province on January 17 after a 46-day voyage, China Baowu Steel Group, the world’s largest steel producer, said in a statement on its WeChat account on Saturday.

Simandou has a planned yearly production capacity of 120 million tons and is made up of four mining blocks that yield a high-grade ore that is 65% iron.

Investors in the four blocks include Rio Tinto, China-owned Chalco and Winning Consortium Simandou (WCS), a Singaporean-Chinese partnership. China Baowu is also a key shareholder in the project after completion of the transfer of shareholding rights by WCS.

Underlining how important the Simandou project is to Beijing, China’s Vice Premier Liu Guozhong attended the commissioning of the mine in Guinea in November.

A second Simandou iron ore shipment departed Guinea in late December, according to China Baowu’s statement.

Beijing set up China Mineral Resources Group in 2022 to centralize iron ore purchases and get better terms from miners.

(By Amy Lv, Ziyi Tang and Lewis Jackson; Editing by Tom Hogue)