Guinea has run its first passenger train on the Trans-Guinean Railway, marking a new phase of the $17 billion Simandou project as the government seeks to turn its vast iron ore reserves into broader economic growth.
Mamadi Doumbouya, Guinea’s president, joined the inaugural journey on October 12 alongside members of the Simandou Strategic Committee and international partners.
The train travelled from Morebaya to Mamou along part of the approximately 650-kilometre railway corridor, passing through the 11.6-kilometre Kindia Tunnel.
The journey came less than a year after railway operations began on November 11, 2025. Iron ore from Simandou has since started moving towards the coast for export, with shipments destined for Chinese steel mills. The deposit is widely described as the world’s largest untapped reserve of high-grade iron ore.
“Simandou is not merely a mining project,” Doumbouya said during the journey. “It is an affirmation of our economic sovereignty and a catalyst for national transformation.”
Beyond iron ore exports
The railway was built by Compagnie du Transguinéen (CTG), a joint venture between the Guinean government and international industrial partners. The infrastructure includes 205 structures, among them 49 very long bridges, 113 major bridges and 43 medium-sized bridges.
The overall Simandou investment is estimated at between $17 billion and $20 billion. Rio Tinto plans to invest $6.2 billion in the mine, railway and port, alongside other partners, including five companies based in China.
The government wants the railway to serve passengers and agricultural traders in addition to transporting minerals. Officials plan to introduce passenger and agricultural freight services gradually, with 10 regional stations under construction and services targeted to begin by the end of 2026.
The proposed services are expected to improve connections between regions, help farmers and traders reach markets and encourage businesses to develop around railway stations and logistics hubs.
Delivering those benefits would help Guinea ensure that the infrastructure supports the wider economy rather than serving mainly as a route for exporting raw materials.
Training Guinean workers
The government is also seeking to increase local participation in the project through employment and skills development.
On October 11, 60 young Guinean workers left for China to train as locomotive drivers. They are expected to operate trains on the railway after completing their training.
Djiba Diakité, the president’s chief of staff and chairman of the Simandou Strategic Committee, presided over their send-off in Morebaya.
The programme is part of Simandou Academy, the training arm of the government’s Simandou 2040 Programme. Its local content strategy focuses on employing Guineans, creating opportunities for domestic businesses and transferring skills and technology.
“Local content is not just a slogan,” Diakité said. “Guinea is no longer content with simply possessing natural resources or supplying raw materials to the world’s factories: it is training the people who will extract, transport and process them.”
He said the railway “will not only be for iron ore. It will be for the people of Guinea”.
Addressing the trainees, he added: “Guinea is moving forward, and its own people are taking the controls.”
Push to process minerals locally
Beyond Simandou, the government is pursuing investments intended to increase domestic mineral processing and reduce reliance on raw material exports.
Chalco Hong Kong and the Guinean government have signed an agreement for a $1 billion alumina refinery in Boffa, with a planned annual production capacity of 1.2 million tonnes. Chalco’s parent company, Chinalco, is already a partner of Rio Tinto in the SimFer consortium developing Simandou.
The proposed refinery would allow Chalco to process bauxite mined in Boffa locally, supporting Conakry’s drive to move away from exporting unprocessed minerals.
Both projects form part of the Simandou 2040 vision, which aims to diversify Guinea’s economy, modernise public institutions and develop its workforce.
However, the scale of investment alone will not determine whether the initiative delivers wider economic benefits.
Progress will depend on the timely introduction of passenger services, the number of jobs and business opportunities created for Guineans, and whether planned processing facilities such as the Boffa refinery are completed as scheduled.
Faith Omoboye is a foreign affairs correspondent with background in History and International relations. Her work focuses on African politics, diplomacy, and global governance.
