SYLLA & PARTNERS advised Société des Bauxites de Guinée (SBG) in the negotiation and drafting of the mining convention between the company and the Government of Guinea. The total investment amount is approximately 14 million US dollars.
SBG is a Guinean company whose capital is majority and ultimately held by Metalcorp, a company that owns an aluminium smelter in Berlin. This shareholding structure illustrates the vertical integration sought by Metalcorp, which wishes to secure its supply of bauxite and alumina from Guinea to its European smelter.
The project involves several integrated industrial components: bauxite mining operations, construction of an alumina refinery with a capacity of 1.6 million tonnes per year enabling local transformation of extracted bauxite, construction of a steam and electricity production unit necessary for the operation of the alumina refinery, as well as construction of a port facility with a capacity of at least 5 million tonnes per year for export of production.
This integrated approach, combining mining extraction, industrial processing, energy production and port infrastructure, is part of the Government of Guinea’s strategy to promote local transformation of mineral resources to create more added value and skilled jobs in Guinea.
Our firm provided comprehensive legal assistance to SBG throughout the negotiation process with the Government of Guinea, mobilizing our expertise in mining law, corporate law and tax law.
The services performed by SYLLA & PARTNERS as counsel to SBG included negotiation and drafting of the mining convention defining the company’s rights and obligations vis-à-vis the Government of Guinea, advice on the legal and tax structuring of the integrated project, assistance in relations with Guinean administrative authorities, as well as advice on regulatory aspects applicable to the different components of the project (mining operations, industrial processing, energy production, port infrastructure).
This type of assignment illustrates our ability to support international investors in negotiating mining conventions with the Government of Guinea, effectively defending our clients’ interests while ensuring regulatory compliance and legal viability of projects.
The SYLLA & PARTNERS team was led by Pierre Kodjo AVODE, partner, assisted by Mohamed Sidiki SYLLA and Madigbè KABA.
To discover other mining convention negotiation projects that our firm has completed in Guinea, visit our references page. For any questions regarding our services in mining convention negotiation or advisory to mining investors, please do not hesitate to contact us.