China Minmetals eyes gold mines in Australia, Canada
22 Oct 2009
By Rujun Shen and Joseph Chaney

Chinese state-owned metals trader China Minmetals Corp. is looking to buy gold mines in Australia and Canada, a senior executive said on Thursday.

Huang Dongmei, deputy general manager of China Minmetals Exploration and Development Ltd, made the remarks at an industry forum in China’s port city of Tianjin.

Separately, a Minmetals executive at the China Mining conference here said on Wednesday that the company would launch construction at its Galeno copper mine in Peru next year, with production due to start in 2012.

State-owned Minmetals, founded in 1950, is the country’s largest base metals trader, engaged in mining, smelting, production and trade of basic metals and raw materials, and competes with the other big state-run trader, Sinosteel, in iron ore and steel.

China has pressed ahead with its strategy of targeting foreign resources through the economic downturn, but its plans have hit a few obstacles, most notably Chinalco’s failure to clinch a $19.5 billion deal with Rio Tinto .