Australian miner Fortescue has announced that it has signed an agreement with the Gabonese government for iron ore mining at the Belinga iron ore project located in Gabon. The miner plans to start mining in the second half of the current year.
The project is expected to deliver initially 2 million mt of iron ore per year, while larger scale production is also being examined.
According to Fortescue, the capital estimate for the early-stage mining development is approximately US$200 million with investment over calendar 2023-24. The development involves conventional open pit mining methods to produce the ore which will be trucked and railed over existing roads and rail infrastructure, and will be shipped from the Owendo Mineral Port, near Libreville.