Axis International Ltd has initiated arbitration proceedings seeking USD 28.9 billion in compensation from Guinea, following the West African nation’s decision to revoke the company’s bauxite mining permit earlier this year. The United Arab Emirates-based firm confirmed that it has taken the dispute to a World Bank tribunal.
The case comes amid a broader shift in Guinea’s approach to its mining industry. Home to the world’s largest bauxite reserves, the country has, over the past year, moved to strengthen state oversight of the sector. This has included cancelling and redistributing several mining permits as the authorities push for higher state revenues and increased local processing of raw materials.
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Led by coup leader Mamady Doumbouya, these policy alterations have triggered several international legal challenges. In November, Nomad Bauxite Corporation filed an arbitration claim, followed earlier this month by a similar action from Nimba Investment LLC.
Axis International warned that Guinea could face serious financial consequences if it does not engage with the arbitration process. In a statement issued on Monday, the company said that failure to compensate or participate in proceedings could jeopardise the country’s access to multilateral donor funding and international financial markets.
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The arbitration has been lodged with the World Bank’s International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes. Guinea’s government did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the matter.
Axis International holds an 85 per cent stake in Axis Minerals Resources SA, a Guinean entity that had rights to operate a bauxite mine in the Boffa region. According to the company, the mining permit was terminated in May as part of a wider revocation that affected dozens of licences.
The Guinean authorities have argued that the mine was either non-operational or insufficiently utilised. Axis International disputes this characterisation, maintaining that the operation was running at scale and provided livelihoods for thousands of workers and their families.
“Over more than a decade, the project developed into a fully operational mine contributing materially to Guinea’s economy,” said Axis International founder Pankaj Oswal in the statement.
The company estimates Guinea’s liability at no less than USD 28.9 billion, a figure it says is based on proven reserves exceeding 800 million metric tonnes of bauxite. In 2024, the mine produced 18 million tonnes of bauxite, making it the country’s second-largest source of bauxite ore exports, according to Axis International.
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