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CITIC eyes stake in Australian mining firm
(Shenzhen Daily/Agencies)
Updated: 2004-12-17 14:45
China International Trust and Investment Corp (CITIC), China's largest
financial conglomerate, was expected to visit an Australian mine project later
this week, a sign of its interest in bidding for a stake in either the project
or its owner, industry sources said Wednesday.
The Chinese company was the latest company to express an interest in WMC
Resources Ltd, which owns the Olympic Dam mine project and faces a
7.4-billion-Australian-dollar (US$9.8 billion) takeover bid by Swiss-based
Xstrata Plc.
WMC, which is fighting the "hostile" bid as it describes, has said it will
host visitors with proposals that will "add value" to the copper and uranium
project.
CITIC had been interested in owning overseas mining assets and might
seriously look for a stake in either WMC or the project, analysts said.
The financial giant has already bought a 22.5 percent stake in an aluminum
smelter in Portland, Oregon, the United States.
CITIC's industrial investments cover infrastructure facilities, raw
materials, energy, transportation, telecommunications, automotives and real
estate. Its Australian unit, CITIC Australia Trading Ltd., exports aluminum and
steel products, fertilizer, as well as copper and iron ore to China.
Earlier reports said that another two Chinese miners, China Minmetals Corp.
and Jinchuan Group, had also visited the WMC project.
WMC and Jinchuan already have a joint venture to explore for metals in West
China, and WMC has pledged to supply Jinchuan with 120,000 tons of
nickel-in-matte from 2005 to 2010.
Other parties interested in the mine project may include Inco Ltd, BHP
Billiton Ltd, Rio Tinto Plc, Phelps Dodge Corp and Companhia Vale do Rio Doce
SA.
Xstrata's bid is expected to close January 28. JP Morgan Chase & Co and
Gresham Partners are advising Xstrata, while UBS AG and Citigroup Inc are
advising WMC.
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