Guinea’s military government has revoked 51 mining licenses covering bauxite, gold, diamonds, graphite, and iron in a sweeping move to reclaim underutilised or inactive concessions.
The repossession, first reported by Reuters, targets permits issued between 2005 and 2023.
Some had expired, while others had decades left.
Information Minister Fana Soumah was quoted as saying the concessions had been returned free of charge to the state.
Guinea holds the world’s largest bauxite reserves, a critical ore for aluminium production, and has recently pressured miners like Kebo Energy and Emirates Global Aluminium.
"Government pressure on Guinea's bauxite industry is building," said Tom Price, investment bank Panmure Liberum's head of commodities.
"We suspect Guinea's government is consolidating the number of foreign bauxite miners and forcing the reformed industry to invest in local downstream processing capacity."
The move mirrors West Africa’s resource nationalism trend, where military regimes in Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso have tightened grip on minerals since 2020.
Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor-In-Chief, Rough & Polished
