On April 19, the release conference of the China Vanadium & Titanium Industry Development Report (2024) was successfully held in Beijing. During the event, Liu Yisong, Senior Vice President of IBI TDD and Chain Leader of the Titanium Dioxide and Carbon Black Industry Chain, and Hu Yanjun, General Manager of Vanmag Mining Company (South Africa), signed a strategic cooperation agreement based on multiple dimensions of collaboration.

Vanmag’s vanadium–titanium magnetite mining area covers approximately 69 square kilometers, featuring flat terrain, a favorable geographic location, abundant reserves, and excellent conditions for large-scale mining operations.

As one of the earliest African countries to sign an intergovernmental cooperation document under the Belt and Road Initiative with China, South Africa maintains close trade relations with China. The country is rich in metal mineral resources and is Africa’s largest iron ore producer. Most of its iron ore is exported by sea through Saldanha Bay Port to China and other global destinations.

The two parties conducted in-depth discussions around the establishment of a China–South Africa cross-border e-commerce trading platform. Both sides expressed their intention to strengthen cooperation in key areas including metal mineral processing, digital logistics, trade and investment, agricultural product processing, energy and resources, finance, digital economy, science and technology, and green development. Anchored in the Belt and Road Initiative and South Africa’s Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan, the partnership aims to create a benchmark model for international cross-border digital platform cooperation.

Through this strategic partnership, IBI TDD and Vanmag Mining Company jointly recognize their strong complementary advantages in industrial internet platform development and industrial digital ecosystem building. Leveraging their respective strengths in industrial operations and resource integration, the two sides will promote cross-border digital trading, digital supply chain development, and global industrial big data services, helping enterprises reduce costs and improve efficiency, enhance global industrial chain collaboration, and contribute to building a China–Africa Belt and Road community with a shared future.