The unrest sparked by a row over local elections held in February spread from Conakry, paralysing much of the capital since protests erupted on Monday. In Boké, police responded to protests on Tuesday with teargas and clubs, a resident said.
Spokesmen for the police and government were not immediately available to comment on the demonstrations in Africa’s largest producer of bauxite that has regularly faced political violence.
The West African nation’s opposition parties are demanding the publication of results from local elections held on February 4 that allies of President Alpha Condé say they have won.
“It’s a situation that is causing losses with our boats stranded and waiting to be loaded,” Frédéric Bouzigues, managing director of Société Minière de Boké (SMB), told Reuters.
In Kamsar, an official with the national mining infrastructure agency said barricades blocked a train carrying ore from Compagnie des Bauxites de Guinée (CBG) on Monday.
The official, who asked not to be named as he was not authorised to speak to the media, said the obstacles were later removed and the train was allowed to continue on its way.
CBG officials could not immediately be reached on Tuesday.
The bauxite industry in Guinea is flourishing even as development of huge iron ore deposits in its forested interior have stalled due to a slump in global commodities prices.
Its main exporters are SMB, which produced around 30 million tonnes of bauxite last year, and CBG, owned by the Guinean government, Alcoa, Rio Tinto Alcan, and Dadco, with output of around 15 million tonnes a year.
Boké and Kamsar were the scenes of repeated bouts of unrest last year with residents protesting about electricity cuts, pollution, and a perceived failure of mining projects to raise living standards.
“It’s really hot here at the moment with these barricades and tyres being burned by the protesters. The gendarmes intervened with tear gas and clubs,” said Boké resident Mamadou Diallo.
The opposition, led by Cellou Dalein Diallo, are demanding the release of full results and poll documents from the February vote, saying the election was marred by fraud.
The protests have coincided with a five-week strike by teachers demanding a salary increase.