The bidding consortium led by Aluminum Corp of China, also known as Chinalco, was placed on the shortlist of bidders for the Las Bambas copper project of Glencore Xstrata. This was revealed by a Chinalco executive. In an interview with Bloomberg at the China Mining conference, Chinalco Senior Vice President Liu Xiangmin said the bidding was a competitive process. However, he said the group was confident about their bid.
The Chinalco-led buyout group had given a USD 5 billion offer for the copper mine in Peru. Two sources told Bloomberg that the sale was part of Glencore's move to get regulatory approval from Chinese authorities for its takeover of Xstrata. According to sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the confidential nature of the matter, Jinchuan Group Ltd was part of the buyout group. Jinchuan is the third biggest producer of copper in the mainland.
In September, Glencore Chief Executive Officer Ivan Glasenberg said that there were four Chinese companies that had made bids for the copper mine.
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