Who we place it with
Steel mills and iron ore trading houses
Destinations
China, the Gulf and Southeast Asia
Volumes placed
Cargo lots on a 62% Fe basis, fines and lumpy quoted separately
Metals · Also traded
Iron Ore
South African hematite is among the cleanest direct shipping ore in the seaborne market, low in alumina and consistent enough that mills can plan a blend around it. We offer fines and lumpy on an FOB basis.
What we supply
Hematite fines and lumpy ore on a 62% Fe basis from Northern Cape operations, railed to deep water port. Fines are the volume product: a substantial tonnage is typically standing available at any given time, which means a buyer with a vessel can usually be served inside a normal laycan rather than waiting on a production build.
Lumpy is priced at market and moves in smaller, less predictable parcels. Where a buyer needs both, we quote them separately rather than blending an average that flatters neither.
Typical specification
| Basis | 62% Fe, adjusted on assay |
|---|---|
| Form | Fines and lumpy |
| Silica | Declared on certificate of analysis |
| Alumina | Typically low by seaborne standards |
| Origin | Northern Cape, South Africa |
| Terms | FOB; CFR by arrangement |
| Pricing | On application, index referenced with Fe adjustment |
How iron ore trades on our desk
Iron ore prices move against a published index with a straightforward Fe adjustment, so the negotiation is rarely about price. It is about tonnage certainty, laycan and who carries the risk between rail and rail side. Our quotes are ex broker, meaning any intermediary commission is added transparently on top rather than buried in the number.
If you are selling
Selling iron ore?
If you produce or hold this material and you do not have a reliable route to a buyer, this is the side of the desk you want. Below is who we place it with and what we will need to know.
What we need to know
- Fe content and the full assay including silica, alumina, phosphorus and sulphur
- Whether the product is fines, lumpy or both, and the split
- Tonnage available and whether it is at mine or already railed to port
- Your delivery basis and any existing rail allocation
You do not need all of this to make first contact. Rough figures are enough to get an answer.
Low alumina South African hematite is well regarded by mills planning a blend. Fines and lumpy are different purchases and should never be offered as a blended average.
Questions
Iron Ore, common questions
What iron ore grades do you offer?
Hematite fines and lumpy on a 62% Fe basis, with the final price adjusted against the assayed Fe content.
How much iron ore fines is available?
Fines are the volume product and a substantial tonnage is generally standing available, so a buyer with a fixed vessel can usually be served within a normal laycan.
Are your iron ore prices inclusive of commission?
No. Quoted prices are ex broker, so any intermediary commission is added on top and stated openly rather than embedded in the price.
Further reading
On this market.
Iron Ore · 22 Aug 2026
Iron Ore Fines and Lumpy: Buying South African Hematite
Fines and lumpy are priced differently because of what happens inside the blast furnace. How South African hematite is specified on a 62% Fe basis and moved.
Read ›
Selling · 3 Sep 2026
Why Your FCO Is Not Getting Responses
Full Corporate Offers get ignored for a small number of predictable reasons. What a buyer sees when yours lands, and what to change before the next one.
Read ›
Selling · 2 Sep 2026
NCNDA and Protecting Your Position as a Seller
Non circumvention agreements are routinely misused to lock producers into arrangements that give them nothing. What a fair one looks like and what to refuse.
Read ›
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Metallurgical chrome concentrate from the Bushveld Complex and Zimbabwe's Great Dyke, 40 to 42% and 46 to 48% Cr₂O₃, moving on FOT, DAP and FOB terms.
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Copper
LME Grade A equivalent copper cathode and blister out of the Central African Copperbelt, routed through Dar es Salaam, Beira and Durban.
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Energies
Thermal Coal
South African RB1, RB2 and RB3 thermal coal at 5,500 to 6,000 kcal/kg NAR, FOB Richards Bay and Maputo, priced against API4.
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Next step
Holding iron ore?
Send the grade, roughly how much you have and where it sits. You will know inside a trading day whether we have a buyer for it.