Rio Tinto, Glencore discuss potential combination
Combining the two businesses would potentially create a behemoth to leapfrog longstanding industry leader BHP Group.
Chinese copper and gold producer Zijin Mining Group has offered fellow Chinese miner Zangge Mining to buy a nearly 25% stake in the company for 13.7 billion yuan ($1.87 billion)
The deal would grant Zijin controlling rights in Zangge, which operates in the mineral-rich western region of Qinghai. It would also allow it to consolidate Zijin’s ownership of the Julong copper project in Tibet, a joint venture with Zangge.
The company secured government approval last year to boost the Julong mine’s output to about 350,000 tonnes per day. Once the expansion is complete, the asset will become China’s largest single copper operation, with annual ore mining and processing volumes exceeding 100 million tonnes.
Zijin, one of China’s most acquisitive metals companies and its biggest listed miner, took control of the Julong project in 2020 and had it up and running in just 18 months. It also owns other assets in Tibet, including the Zhunuo copper mine, which it acquired in August 2023.
Additionally, Zijin holds a controlling stake in lithium producer Lakkor Resources, and is the second-largest shareholder of Tibet-based companies Yulong Copper and Tianyuan Mining.
The imminent takeover adds to Zijin’s string of recent global acquisitions aimed at boosting gold production and expanding its footprint in battery metals, including copper and lithium.
The state-backed miner has added multiple lithium assets to its portfolio, notably Canada’s Neo Lithium, which was focused on mining in Argentina, as well as majority stakes in the Lakkor Tso Lithium Salar mine in China’s Tibet region and the Xiangyuan lithium mine in Hunan province.
Zijin is also involved the construction of plants to produce lithium iron phosphate for cathodes used in electric vehicles.
It has also increased presence in precious metals, acquiring the Akyem gold mine in Ghana, a majority stake in Rosebel gold mines in Suriname, La Arena copper-gold mine in Peru, and an indirect interest in the Koné gold project in Côte d’Ivoire, to name a few.
Zijin has since postponed the start of certain projects in Argentina and Tibet until 2025, citing weak lithium prices and permitting delays. Despite these setbacks, the company plans to kick off production at its first lithium exploration project in the Democratic Republic of Congo next year.
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