Cameroon will begin construction in August of a railway line connecting its coast to a large iron-ore deposit straddling its border with Congo Republic, the interim mines minister said. The central African country signed a deal with two China-linked companies in June 2021 to construct the railway, despite facing legal action from Australia’s Sundance Resources. Sundance has filed for international arbitration and billions of dollars in damages, saying Cameroon and Congo Republic violated contracts by developing the Mbalam-Nabeba project with Chinese investors. Cameroon in 2021 signed a memorandum of understanding to construct the 500 km (310 mile) rail link, with a capacity to carry 35-million tonnes of high-grade iron-ore per year for a decade, with representatives of Aust-Sino Resources and Bestway Finance. Congo Republic revoked Sundance affiliate Congo Iron’s permit for the Congolese part of the project in December 2020 and awarded it to a little-known company Sangha Mining Development Sasu, which is backed by Bestway.
Yaounde and Brazzaville on Track to Ease Movement of Goods
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