AMR signs Guinea bauxite deal with SMB, the Franco-Asian consortium

On Wednesday June 14, France's Alliance Miniere Responsable (AMR) signed a deal with a Franco-Asian consortium to exploit bauxite reserves in a western Guinean city that recently faced unrest caused by protests against mining firms.

As reported by local media, Societe Miniere de Boke (SMB), a joint French-Chinese-Singaporean venture, has been mining bauxite in Boke since 2014, and signed the deal with AMR at a Conakry hotel.

Guinea is the world's leading producer of bauxite and is a lucrative destination for China to source bauxite after the mining and export ban crippled Indonesia and Malaysia, the two active bauxite exporting countries. Guinea President Alpha Conde said in May that mining companies operating in Guinea must "ensure locals benefit from the proceeds" and follow environmental regulations, "to avoid unrest and local protest.

SMB is a joint venture by Singaporean maritime logistics firm Winning Shipping, specialist French transport firm United Mining Supply (UMS) and Chinese aluminium producer Shandong Weiqiao.

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Both the companies expected that their collaboration and infrastructure tie-up would "reduce the negative environmental and social impact" of transporting mined bauxite. Last week, AMR was granted a 15-year renewable permit to exploit about 430 million tons of bauxite from the region.

AMR is backed by French heavyweights like Areva's former CEO Anne Lauvergeon, shipping magnate Edouard Louis-Dreyfus, and entrepreneur Xavier Niel.