November 26 – Western Mining Co., a major metal producer in China, announced that it has won regulatory approval to develop the country’s largest copper deposit in Tibet.
The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) has approved commencement of first-phase construction activities at the Tibet Yulong Copper Mine, the Shanghai-listed company said last Thursday.
Western Mining is to invest RMB 1.8 billion in the first-phase construction, with an expectation to produce 990,000 tons of copper ore annually. 30,000 tons of refined copper is also expected to be produced in an affiliated smelter per year, according to Western Mining’s filing with Shanghai Stock Exchange.
Located in Chunyido village, Jomda county, Chamdo, in the eastern area of traditional Tibet known as Kham, the copper mine has 6.5 million tons of proven copper reserves, according to Chinese statistics, which represents more than one-tenth of China’s estimated total copper resources of 62.74 million tons.
Currently, Western Mining ranks the seventh in the copper mining industry in China. It is also the country’s second-largest lead miner and fourth-largest zinc miner.
