Trafigura to take equity stake in Guangxi Jinchuan copper smelter
Trafigura Pte Ltd., a market leader in the global commodities industry, together with Trafigura Investment (China) Co Ltd, has this week signed an agreement to acquire a 30 percent equity stake in the Jinchuan Group's newly established copper smelter in Fangchengang, People's Republic of China. The agreement, which is subject to regulatory approval, includes a multi-year supply and off-take arrangement corresponding to Trafigura's shareholding percentage for the 400,000-tpy copper smelter located in Fangchengang, Guangxi province, on China's southern coast, which began production late last year.
Jinchuan Group Chairman Yang Zhiqiang said: "The organisations have joined hands to bring into play their respective advantages. This will enhance the market competitiveness of Jinchuan in Guangxi and widen the areas of cooperation between the two organisations. We expect that this new partnership will help promote local economic and social development and achieve a win-win cooperation."
"We are very happy to be given the opportunity to invest in Guangxi Jinchuan Smelter, which we believe is a first class copper asset," said Claude Dauphin, Trafigura Chairman and CEO. "We have worked with Jinchuan Group for many years and through this agreement we will further strengthen our relationship with them. Jinchuan Group has an excellent reputation in non-ferrous mining and smelting industries, both in and outside of China."
Simon Collins, Trafigura's Head of Non-Ferrous and Bulk added: "As one of the world's largest trading companies in non-ferrous metals we will bring our long-term relationships with producers, reliability and commercial experience to this partnership. We're proud to be the first international trading firm to make a major co-investment in a Chinese domestic smelting business."
Further Information
Trafigura's Global Press Office: +41 22 592 4528 or media@trafigura.com
Poh Leng Yu, Ruder Finn Singapore: +65 6235 4495 or yupl@ruderfinnasia.com
Notes to editors
Jinchuan Group Co., Ltd
Jinchuan Group Co., Ltd. is a transnation group engaged in mining, concentrating, metallurgy and chemical engineering and deep processing, which vertically integrates the mining industry and metals. Through the green development, clean production and comprehensive utilization in the whole world, limited resources will be converted to products and services required by customers to the greatest extent, thus promoting the economic prosperity and the common progress of the enterprise, staff and society.
More than 50 years ago, due to the discovery of Jinchuan Nickel Mine, Jinchuan was founded in a small village which was located at the foot of the Longshou Mountain in the middle Hexi Corridor in northwest China and couldn't be found on the map. Employees of Jinchuan coming from all directions of China write a glorious history of entrepreneurship with the hardworking and surmounting spirit. Today, Jinchuan Group Co., Ltd. has become the fourth largest nickel manufacturing enterprise in the world, the second largest cobalt manufacturing enterprise in the world, the third largest copper manufacturing enterprise in China, and first largest platinum group metal manufacturing enterprise in China. On April 28, 2011, Jinchuan Group Co., Ltd. obtained the highest award in China's industry field - Chinese Industrial Awards.
The headquarters of Jinchuan is located in Jinchang City of Gansu Province in northwest China. Jinchuan Headquarters has 32 production and auxiliary service units, and the layout includes the vertically integrated complete product industry chain for mine, ore dressing and smelting. It also has many related diverse auxiliary industries such as the engineering construction, mechanical manufacturing and automation engineering, and has the world-class mining, ore dressing and smelting process flows. Now it has formed the annual capacity of producing 0.2 million tons of nickel, 0.6 million tons of copper, 10,000 tons of cobalt and 2.8 million tons of chemical products. On this basis, it focuses on the smelting and processing of nickel, copper and cobalt as well as the chemical processing of materials, and develops strategic new emerging industries such as the deep processing, new materials and new energy.
Trafigura
Founded in 1993, the Trafigura Group has become one of the world's leading independent commodity traders, specialising in the oil, minerals and metals markets. Primary trading activities are the supply and transport of oil and petroleum products and non-ferrous and bulk commodities. The trading business is supported by industrial and financial assets including global oil products distribution company Puma Energy; joint venture company DT Group; global terminals operator Impala; Trafigura's Mining Group and Galena Asset Management.
The Trafigura Group is owned by over 700 of its almost 9,000 employees who work in 58 countries. The Group has been connecting its customers to the global economy for more than two decades, growing prosperity by advancing trade.