Zijin Mining : to Acquire Ultra-Large, Undeveloped Copper Mine in Tibet for Nearly 1.65 Billion RMB

On August 21, Zijin Mining announced it will acquire a 48.591% interest in Tibet Zhonghui Industrial for 1.646 billion RMB, which will give the company a relative controlling interest in the Zhunuo Copper Mine, an undeveloped, ultra-large copper mine in Tibet, China. According to the agreement signed for the acquisition, Zijin Mining will take leadership of the construction and operational phase for the mine.

The Zhunuo Copper Mine is situated in Ngamring County, Xigazê, Tibet. According to a detailed exploration report submitted in June 2023 by the Geological Exploration Team 2 of the Tibet Geological Exploration Bureau, the mine has 2.2 million tonnes of contained copper, at an average grade of 0.62%, and an additional 1.34 million tonnes of copper contained in low-grade ores, grading 0.29%. Zhunuo is a rare undeveloped, ultra-large copper mine in China, with a shallow orebody that is thick in the center and thin around the perimeter.

The project's mining and processing operations will be located at 4,460 to 5,850 meters above sea level. Zijin Mining has accumulated successful experience in building and operating projects at high altitudes in Qinghai, Xinjiang and Tibet. According to a preliminary plan, Zijin Mining will employ its high-altitude open-pit mining technology that is intelligent, low-carbon, and eco-friendly, and its intelligent processing technology, to develop the project. This will turn Zhunuo into a green and intelligent mine site. The design capacity of its open-pit mining and processing facilities is 24 million tonnes per annum. Excluding the mine construction period, the project is expected to have a mine life of 20 years, with an average copper output of 99,000 tonnes per annum after reaching nameplate capacity.

To date, Zijin Mining has invested more than 30 billion RMB in Tibet. It holds controlling interests in Julong Copper and lithium producer Lakkor Resources, and is the second-largest shareholder of Tibet-based companies such as Yulong Copper and Tianyuan Mining.

By the end of 2022, Zijin Mining owned 73.72 million tonnes of untapped copper resources (excluding those of the Zhunuo Project), ranking 8th in the global mining sector and equivalent to more than half of China's total. In 2022, the company contributed 40% of the global net increment in mined copper output, establishing itself as the world's fastest-growing copper producer. With the addition of the Zhunuo copper project and the ongoing development of the Julong copper mine, Zijin's Tibet business is poised to become one of the most important drivers for its copper production, further strengthening the company's copper resource base and increasing its copper output in China.

Translator:Li Yuanxing Reviser: Jian Editor-in-Chief: Wang Jie