Senegal seek partners for Faleme iron ore mine

DAKAR (Reuters) - Senegal is seeking partners for its Faleme iron ore mine after the West African nation won a court case against steelmaker ArcelorMittal to rescind a $2.2 billion deal, the prime minister told parliament on Monday. The Faleme mine has estimated iron ore reserves of about 750 million tonnes. The International Chamber of Commerce's arbitration court in Paris ruled in September that Senegal was within its rights to cancel the 2007 deal because ArcelorMittal failed to honor a commitment to invest the funds for the project. "After the Paris chamber of commerce ruled in favor of Senegal, the government is engaged in seeking partners for the Faleme iron ore mine," Prime Minister Aminata Toure told parliament. Toure did not give details of the potential partners nor the progress of any talks. ArcelorMittal had planned to build a new port near the capital Dakar and a 750 km (406 mile) railway line linking it to the mine in Senegal's far east. However, it suspended the project, blaming global economic crisis and a fall in commodity prices.