Ivanhoe Atlantic Inc. has added U.S. diplomatic, financial and critical-minerals expertise to its board, installing former ambassador J. Peter Pham as Executive Chairman and Interim Chief Executive Officer, in a move that underscores the company's push to align its Guinea iron ore project with U.S. capital markets and strategic supply chains.
Pham, who previously served as non-executive chairman, assumes executive leadership as the U.S.-based mining company shifts from policy and access negotiations into a delivery phase ahead of planned production in 2027. He succeeds outgoing chief executive Bronwyn Barnes, whose departure the board acknowledged following her tenure overseeing the project's early development.
The company also appointed Erik Bethel, Samantha Carl-Yoder, and Daniel Pfeffer as non-executive directors, replacing Patrick Tsang, Ken Lau and Robin Sandenburgh. Ivanhoe Atlantic said the new board composition reflects its intention to focus future capital raising primarily in U.S.-aligned markets and strengthen governance as it prepares for construction.
Pham said the appointments expand the company's ability to operate in complex geopolitical and regulatory environments. He described Ivanhoe Atlantic as an American company committed to developing critical and strategic mineral projects aligned with long-term U.S. interests.
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While the leadership changes are centered in the boardroom, they follow a significant breakthrough in West Africa that has reshaped the project's outlook. In December 2025, Liberia's Legislature ratified Ivanhoe Atlantic's Concession and Access Agreement, granting the company access to the Yekepa-Buchanan railway and the Port of Buchanan under a multi-user framework. The agreement allows iron ore from southeastern Guinea to be transported through Liberia for export, removing a long-standing bottleneck for cross-border mineral development.
Ivanhoe Atlantic's flagship Kon Kweni iron ore project is located about 16 kilometers from Guinea's border with Liberia and roughly 46 kilometers from the northern terminus of the Yekepa-Buchanan railway, placing Liberia's infrastructure at the center of the project's export strategy.
The company plans to expand rail and port capacity to support initial exports of between two and five million tonnes per annum, with capacity ultimately rising to as much as 30 million tonnes annually. Ivanhoe Atlantic will become the rail line's first multi-user customer, aligning with President Joseph Boakai's ARREST Agenda and the government's plan to reassert sovereign oversight of strategic infrastructure through the establishment of a National Rail Authority.
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In Guinea, Ivanhoe Atlantic holds a mining convention for the Kon Kweni project, which hosts more than 750 million tonnes of direct-shipping iron ore, including over 200 million tonnes grading above 67 percent iron. The project is operated through Société des Mines de Fer de Guinée, an Ivanhoe Atlantic subsidiary, with the Government of Guinea holding a 15 percent equity stake.
The development is also anchored in a 2021 bilateral implementation agreement between Liberia and Guinea promoting shared use of transport infrastructure to support mining development and regional economic integration.
New board member Erik Bethel said the mining and metals sector is increasingly shaped by concerns over supply chain security, adding that strong governance and alignment with U.S. strategic interests are becoming decisive factors in project financing. Carl-Yoder described the Liberia-Guinea corridor as a long-term economic asset for communities in both countries, while positioning the project to supply high-grade iron ore to U.S.-aligned markets.
With leadership changes in place and rail access secured, Ivanhoe Atlantic said it is now focused on completing permitting and regulatory approvals as it moves toward construction, positioning Kon Kweni among the first major mining projects to benefit from Liberia's transition to a multi-user rail system.
