On May 6, 2022, Sinosteel Group and the Ministry of Industry and Mines of Cameroon held a signing ceremony for the Lobi iron ore mining agreement at the Parliament Building in Yaounde, Cameroon. Liu Andong, deputy secretary of the party committee and general manager of Sinosteel Group, and Li Rongting, deputy general manager, witnessed the signing of the contract through video connection in Beijing. Chinese Ambassador to Cameroon Wang Yingwu and Counselor Guo Jianjun attended the signing ceremony. Cameroonian Minister of Industry and Mines Gabriel Dodo Ndoke and Sinosteel Cameroon General Manager Zheng signed the mining agreement on behalf of both parties.

The Lobi iron ore project is located in the Kribi area on the southwest coast of Cameroon, West Africa. It is about 17 kilometers straight from the Kribi deep-water port, which was constructed by China Harbour Group and has been delivered and operated. The nearby natural gas and water resources are abundant and the geographical conditions are superior. The magnetite resource of Lobi iron ore is about 600 million tons, with low impurities. In November 2015, Sinosteel Group submitted an application for a mining license to the Cameroonian government, and between 2017 and 2021, it has held multiple rounds of mining agreement negotiations with the Cameroonian Prime Minister's Office Large Project Committee. During the period, the Cameroonian government overcame the impact of the change of government and the new crown epidemic. After repeated efforts, the Cameroonian Presidential Palace finally approved the signing of the mining agreement in April 2022. According to the needs of the implementation of the Lobi Iron Mine Project, the mining agreement shall not only pay attention to the financial, financial, tax, energy, water, forest, land, etc. The relevant matters involved in the development of the project are stipulated in detail. After the mining agreement is signed, the Cameroonian government will grant a mining license for the Lobi iron ore project.

Liu Andong said in his speech that the successful signing of the Cameroon Lobi iron ore mining agreement is an important milestone for Sinosteel Group to expand the development of mineral resources in Central and West Africa after 14 years of hard work. After the signing of the project, Sinosteel Group will work with domestic strategic partners to build a comprehensive iron ore project including mining, processing, power generation and wharf and other infrastructure, and strive to develop and operate it efficiently and pragmatically, making it a Sinosteel project. Another successful example of production capacity cooperation between Cameroon and even China and Africa. In the later stage of the project, Sinosteel Group will also discuss local deep processing in accordance with China Baowu's international business strategy, and carry out project feasibility research topics such as pellets and direct reduced iron.

Fu Ruilong, assistant to the general manager of Sinosteel Group, head of the Assets and Finance Department, and relevant overseas leaders of Sinosteel Group witnessed the signing of the contract in Beijing. The guests present at the signing ceremony of Cameroon included the governor of the central and southern regions of Cameroon, as well as the Cameroon National Petroleum and Natural Corporation, the Kribi Port Authority, the National Mining Corporation, the Cameroonian Parliament, the relevant ministries and commissions of Cameroon, local governments at all levels, and the West Africa project of China Harbour Group. More than 150 representatives from the Ministry.Editor/Zhao E