Editor's Note
This editor’s note highlights the key facts and market implications behind “New Channel for China’s Import of West African I”, with emphasis on sourcing, product fit, fabrication, logistics, or buyer impact.
On March 25, the launch ceremony for the Simandou Bonded Crushing Project at Liaoning Port (Dalian Port) and the arrival of the first shipment of SimFer iron ore were held in Dalian, Liaoning. As the largest full-chain overseas mineral supporting project led by China for the first time, this project is of great significance for ensuring national strategic resource security and will have a profound impact on enhancing China's international pricing power for iron ore. The arrival of the first shipment also marks the official opening of a new iron ore logistics channel connecting Guinea in West Africa with Northeast China. The Simandou iron ore mine, located in the Republic of Guinea, West Africa, is a world-class large-scale high-quality hematite deposit, with proven standard resources of 4.41 billion tons and an average iron grade exceeding 65%, making it a rare high-quality mine globally. In 2022, Chinese enterprises, through communication and coordination with the Guinean government and partners such as Rio Tinto, pushed the Simandou project into substantive development. The project will gradually form a production capacity of 120 million tons per year across its northern and southern blocks, potentially positioning Guinea as the third-largest iron ore supplier after Australia and Brazil. SimFer is the developer and operator of the southern block of the Simandou iron ore mine, with Chinalco holding a 47% stake and Rio Tinto holding 53%. The Liaoning Port Group, in coordination with China Merchants Group's internal enterprises, actively worked to attract Chinalco, Rio Tinto, and the Simandou team for port inspections, and successfully promoted Dalian Port as one of Rio Tinto's first three cooperative ports nationwide in May 2024. Xu Feng, CEO of Rio Tinto China, stated that the Simandou project is an important part of Rio Tinto's global resource portfolio, providing a solid foundation for long-term, stable supply of high-quality iron ore resources. "China is Rio Tinto's largest market and the core of our business," he said. He added that the Simandou project will contribute to the low-carbon development of China's steel industry and provide more support for enriching the structure of iron ore resources and the stable operation of the global steel industry chain.
As one of China's important steel industry bases, Liaoning produced over 68 million tons of crude steel in 2025, ranking fourth in the country. As a key gateway for Northeast China's opening-up, the Liaoning Port Group pioneered the "bonded ore blending" model in Chinese ports, created the "Dalian Standard Ore" industry brand, and continuously expanded services such as multi-country ore blending and bonded screening. By establishing a combined iron ore port from Dalian to Yingkou, Panjin, and Suizhong, it improved the Northeast Asian iron ore transshipment and distribution system. In 2025, it achieved a throughput of over 10 million tons of foreign trade steel and nearly 15 million tons of trade ore. According to reports, after customs approval for the "bonded crushing" business of imported iron ore, enterprises are permitted to carry out bonded crushing operations on imported iron ore in designated port areas, with the crushed products still stored or distributed under bonded status. Compared to the traditional model, the bonded crushing business shifts overseas crushing operations to domestic locations, reducing the delivery time for enterprises from 45 days to just 3 days. This better meets the diversified and personalized needs of the domestic market and strongly promotes the construction of Dalian as a Northeast Asian iron ore distribution and processing center.
Source: Read the original article | Published: March 25, 2026