Name of the Project
Zanaga iron-ore project.

Location
The project is located about 30 km west of Zanaga, a regional centre of the Lekoumou department of Congo-Brazzaville. 

Project Owner/s
Iron-ore exploration and development company Zanaga Iron Ore Company (ZIOC), through its wholly owned subsidiary Jumelles BVI Limited.

Jumelles currently holds a 100% interest in the Zanaga project. ZIOC signed a binding term sheet with Red Arc Minerals in February 2026 for a proposed strategic investment in the project. 

Project Description
The Zanaga project is a large-scale openpit iron-ore project with a 6.9-billion-tonne mineral resource and a 2.1-billion-tonne ore reserve. The project is targeting production of high-grade direct reduced iron (DRI) pellet feed concentrate with very low impurity levels.

The project is planned as a 30-million-tonne-a-year operation over a mine life of more than 30 years, with development proposed in two stages. 

Stage 1 comprises a 12-million-tonne-a-year operation, while Stage 2 comprises an 18-million-tonne-a-year expansion to 30-million tonnes a year.

The 30-million-tonne-a-year development will include mine, processing and operational facilities at Zanaga, a buried pipeline and concentrate-handling facilities at Pointe-Indienne. The logistics corridor will connect the mine to the Pointe-Indienne Special Economic Zone, where ZIOC and port development partner Arise Integrated Industrial Platforms are working to advance a minerals export facility.

The updated development strategy incorporates a modular 12-million-tonne-a-year hematite concentrator complex, comprising three four-million-tonne-a-year lines; a two-stage 12-million-tonne-a-year and 18-million-tonne-a-year pipeline system, with an optional single 30-million-tonne-a-year slurry pipeline system; thickened tailings storage facilities; and a 12-million-tonne-a-year filter plant and covered concentrate-handling facilities.

Laboratory-scale DRI testwork completed in 2025 confirmed the project’s potential to produce DRI-specification pellet feed concentrate from the Stage 1 hematite and Stage 2 magnetite orebody lithologies. ZIOC has reported average product grades of 68.5% iron for Stage 1 and 68.8% iron for the combined Stage 1 and Stage 2 operation in the April 2026 economic update.

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The April 2026 economic update estimates a Stage 1 net present value (NPV) of $2.54-billion and an internal rate of return (IRR) of 22.5%. For the combined Stage 1 and Stage 2 operation, the update estimates an NPV of $4.90-billion and an IRR of 24.3%.

Capital Expenditure
Stage 1 capital expenditure (capex) is estimated at $2.17-billion. Combined Stage 1 and Stage 2 capital expenditure is estimated at $4.05-billion, including Stage 2 expansion capex of $1.87-billion.

Planned Start/End Date
The final investment decision (FID) recommendation is targeted for mid-2027. The FID gating process is expected to start in early 2027, with investor consortium milestones aligned to a construction decision by the end of 2027.
The start of construction and first production dates have not yet been stated.

Latest Developments
ZIOC announced on May 6, 2026, that it had completed the project development strategy programme, including the DRI process plant costing and original-equipment manufacturer (OEM) studies. The programme confirmed DRI product-quality potential in Stage 1 and Stage 2; costed the modular Stage 1 hematite processing facilities, thickened and dry tailings facilities, and the optional single 30-million-tonne-a-year pipeline; and assembled a constructor engagement programme.

The 2026/27 work programme includes updated mineral resource and reserve modelling; bulk sampling and pilot-scale metallurgical testing; completion of the environmental, social and health impact assessment; nonprocess infrastructure design and costing; the definition of operating-phase systems and associated operating costs; and updated financial modelling and project economics.
ZIOC has also reported continued progress on the proposed Red Arc Minerals strategic investment. Finalised transaction agreements are targeted for July 2026, after which completion will remain subject to shareholder and any required regulatory approvals.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
DRA (process plant study); P&C (FDSO evaluation process); Centrale Electrique du Congo (technical, economic and legal aspects required for power generation and distribution for Stage 1 operations); Arise Integrated Industrial Platforms (onshore and offshore port infrastructure); and leading Chinese OEMs and construction groups (2025 OEM and constructor engagement programme).

Contact Details for Project Information
ZIOC, tel +44 20 3916 5021 or email info@zanagairon.com.