All is set and ready for Ivanhoe Liberia, a subsidiary of Ivanhoe Atlantic, an American company, to invest a billion U.S. dollars to revitalize Liberia’s Yekepa-Buchanan railway and port system once its Concession and Access Agreement is ratified by the Legislature. The House of Representatives will vote on the Concession and Access Agreement (CAA) today. The Deal has received support from President Joseph Nyuma Boakai’s Administration. This follows over six years of discussions between Liberia’s Inter-Ministerial Concessions Committee (IMCC) and Ivanhoe Atlantic that culminated in the CAA being under consideration.
The agreement builds on a 2021 Implementation Agreement between the Republics of Guinea and Liberia that focuses on the shared use of transport infrastructure at national, sub-regional and regional levels. It also sets the foundations for the establishment of an independent National Rail Authority (NRA), a vision endorsed by President Boakai through Executive Orders 153 and 136, by introducing a new rail user to the 243 km Yekepa-Buchanan rail corridor.
In a sincere demonstration of the company’s long-term commitment to Liberia, Ivanhoe Atlantic has already contributed US$37 million to the Liberian Revenue Authority via payments to the Central Bank of Liberia. Once the CAA is ratified, Ivanhoe Atlantic will make US$35 million in direct payments to the Central Bank via the following Concession Payments.
In accordance with the CAA, “US $1 million will be paid within 10 business days after it has been signed by the President and published on the gazette. US$10 million within 10 business days after the date the agreement takes effect. US$15 million on the date Ivanhoe Atlantic commences operations on the railway.US$2.33 million on the date the NRA Act is enacted. US$3.33 million on the date the Independent Operator is appointed by the NRA; and US$3.33 million on the first anniversary of the appointment of the Independent Operator.”
The CAA also includes the establishment of a Community Development Fund (CDF) to support communities along the railway in Nimba, Grand Bassa, and Bong. Ivanhoe Atlantic has committed annual payments starting at US$1 million, raising consecutively to US$5 million annually in five years. This will be contributed annually throughout the decades during which Ivanhoe will transit high-grade iron ore through Liberia. In addition to the concession payments and CDF, Ivanhoe Atlantic will invest nearly US$1 billion in Liberia across two phases, making it one of the largest infrastructure investments in the country’s modern history, focused entirely on road, rail and port systems.
In Phase 1, Ivanhoe Atlantic will invest US$64 million to build roads leading to the railway and rehabilitate the existing track and port infrastructure. Target production capacity once the infrastructure development is completed is 2–5 metric tons per annum (mtpa) of high-grade iron ore. Phase 2 will see an additional US $888 million invested in direct capital costs, split between an estimated US$452 million railway upgrade and US $436 million to expand the Buchanan Port.
The work is projected to expand capacity to accommodate Ivanhoe Atlantic’s target export capacity of 30 mtpa, pending feasibility studies, and regulatory approvals. Approximately US $800 million will also be invested in Guinea to connect the countries’ trade corridor. Additionally, the investment and concession payments granting Ivanhoe Atlantic user-access to the railway will generate approximately US$60 million of revenue per year for Liberia in rail user fees, dividends, taxes, and other sources of revenue generation.
In addition to the financial investment, Ivanhoe Liberia will hire 500 people in Phase 1 of the project and create an estimated 3,000 indirect jobs through domestic suppliers and service providers. President Joseph Nyuma Boakai has signaled his desire for the Legislature to ratify the agreement, which is poised to unlock Liberia’s railway infrastructure for shared, multi-industry use and to create pathways for inclusive growth and national revenue expansion.
Today’s vote at the House of Representatives will make Ivanhoe Atlantic the first of many potential rail users who will bring economic growth to Liberia. A vast amount of further investment and revenue is on the table should the Legislature approve of expanding railway access under President Boakai’s vision of a multi-user framework. Liberians will benefit from this critical national asset, driving broader economic growth in sectors across mining, agriculture, freight, manufacturing, health, and education, observers believe. As the Boakai Administration sets the 2026 budget, it can look to these diverse, long-term revenue sources that multi-decade concession agreements with fair-minded partners will generate.
