Simandou iron ore: a new African flow

Read the PDF edition (2 pages)

The Simandou project in Guinea shows the scale on which African flows can be created. After decades of delays, disputes and changes of shareholders, the project was officially launched on 11 November 2025. A first shipment of around 200,000 tonnes of iron ore arrived on 17 January 2026 at the Chinese port of Majishan, after a crossing of forty-six days. The project brings together Rio Tinto, the Winning consortium, the steelmaker Baowu and Chinalco. It relies on a railway of more than 600 kilometres to the Atlantic coast and is eventually to produce some 120 million tonnes a year of ore with an iron content of more than 65 per cent.¹ Such a volume would make Guinea one of the world’s leading exporters of iron ore and would alter the maritime flows between West Africa and Asia.

Geneva is involved in this type of project in several capacities. Metals and freight traders, the banks that finance the cargoes, the inspection companies that certify the grades, the insurers and the arbitrators who handle the disputes all find business in it. Family offices and asset managers, for their part, find exposure through the bonds and shares of the companies concerned. The project also illustrates the competition described in Chapter III: the capital, the builders and the buyers are Chinese. The Geneva financial centre, which did not finance the infrastructure, will trade its flows. The question whether Geneva can be anything other than an intermediary for African flows financed by others runs through this Part. Simandou poses it on the scale of an entire country.

Notes

“Guinea ships first Simandou iron ore, ending decades of delays”, Ecofin Agency, 19 January 2026. ↩

For general information only. This article does not constitute legal or tax advice, does not replace advice on an individual case and creates no lawyer-client relationship. It reflects the legal position as of September 2025.

English

Contact

Dr Alexander Ressos, TEP

Rechtsanwalt/Attorney-at-Law

I am a Swiss attorney-at-law and also admitted as a solicitor in Hong Kong and in England & Wales, with almost 25 years of experience.

Together with my multilingual team, including Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Ukrainian and French native speakers, I advise companies and their owners from around the world on the full range of banking, corporate, commercial and tax law matters in Switzerland, including international tax planning, fiduciary services, and legal family office services including immigration & relocation or real estate investments. My practice has a particular focus on clients from growth and frontier markets in Greater China, Central Asia and the Caucasus, the rest of Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America, and I equally advise clients from Europe and North America. Through an affiliated Swiss trust company, we also take care of the incorporation and ongoing administration of their companies and other structures, including accounting, tax returns and corporate secretarial services, and I serve as a professional director where required. With the support of a network of first-class cooperation partners, I also implement solutions worldwide.

My approach is to act as a trusted advisor who works directly with decision-makers, on an equal footing: I start from what you want to achieve and shape every structure, contract and tax decision around your commercial goals and how it improves your after-tax return. As “lawyers who make it happen”, my team and I stay involved until your company is set up, your structure is in place and your transaction has closed, and we remain available for any follow-on work that may be required. You benefit from bespoke solutions and personal attention, and sound, friendly and practical advice. We are not the lowest-cost provider in the market, nor do we intend to be; our aim is to deliver well-founded, proper solutions and excellent value for money.

Get in touch →

Simandou iron ore: a new African flow

Notes

Setting up or expanding in Switzerland?