Liberia, Jan. 30 -- High Power Exploration (HPX), a mining firm backed by billionaire Robert Friedland, is facing intensifying scrutiny over its push to secure rail access through Liberia to export iron ore from Guinea's Nimba deposit. Critics, including industry analysts and regional policymakers, now question the feasibility-and motives-of HPX's proposed $5 billion Liberian infrastructure project, arguing it clashes with Guinea's historic stance on resource sovereignty and a transformative new rail project on its own soil.

A Legacy of Resistance: Guinea's 60-Year Stance

For over six decades, successive Guinean governments have refused to permit the export of their iron ore through neighboring Liberia, insisting that mining firms inves...