Teck Resources Ltd., Newmont Mining Corp., private equity firm Blackstone Group LP and former Barrick Gold CEO Aaron Regent's Magris Resources are working together on a bid for the Las Bambas copper mine in Peru, sources told Reuters. Las Bambas is owned by multinational mining company Glencore Xtrata.
China's Minmetals Corp. has so far been seen as the front runner for the USD5.9 billion deal. MMG, its Hong Kong-listed offshore arm, is bidding alongside CITIC Group and other smaller partners, the report said.
Reuters reported that Teck, Newmont, Blackstone and Magris have already reached out to financing banks for the potential bid, suggesting that the consortium sees itself as a serious contender.
Anglo-Swiss commodities trader Glencore agreed this year to exit Las Bambas to secure approval from China's competition regulators for its planned takeover of mining company Xtrata. Beijing feared that the post-merger group would have too much power over the copper market, the report said.
Initial bids for the Peruvian copper mine came in around USD6 billion last month. The news agency, citing Nomura analysts, said that Las Bambas' end-2014 value stands at USD6.2 billion. The next round of bids for Las Bambas is due next month.
Las Bambas is one of the largest mines in Xtrata's project portfolio. It is due to start production in 2015. Las Bambas is expected to produce more than 450,000 tone of copper annually in its first five years and 300,000 tons annually thereafter, Reuters said.
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