CHINA MINING News

Enorth Web：Focus on CHINA MINING 2013

Source: enorth.com.cn  Citation: enorth.com.cn  Date: 2013-11-06

The Hon. Kamal Abdel Latif

The Hon. Kamal Abdel Latif, Minister, Ministry of Minerals, Sudan:
A remarkably successful promotion achievement in Tianjin

On this year’s CHINA MINING, The Hon. Kamal Abdel Latif, Minister of Minerals of Sudan told the reporters that Sudan organized a large delegation of 35 people to come to Tianjin, and brought six major promotion projects including gold mining exploration and made remarkable results.

“Thank you very much for inviting us to participate in this year’s CHINA MINING. Tianjin, where the event was held, has a sound green environment and an orderly city appearance. The organizer’s thoughtful arrangements for the event’s schedule left me a deep impression.” The Hon. Kamal Abdel Latif, Minister of Minerals of Sudan said. "Sudan has a very large space and potential in the field of mineral resources development. It also has rich gold, silver and iron reserves. Foreign companies invested in Sudan can enjoy the concessions on the tariff and large machinery import. We are looking forward to working together with the enterprises of Tianjin and the other Chinese-funded enterprises.”

During the event, the Sudanese delegation also held a mining investment promotion at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center. They negotiated with many Chinese mining agencies. Many companies expressed their investment interests in Sudan. And Sudan wishes to further exploit their own resources with China’s advanced production technologies.

The Hon. Shri R·H·Khawaja

The Hon. Shri R·H·Khawaja, State Secretary, Ministry of Mines, India:
Sino-Indian cooperation: Broad Prospect

"I think the organization of this event has been done very well, the modern hardware facilities in Meijiang Convention Center shocked me greatly, and the schedule arrangement is also very scientific." The Hon. Shri R·H·Khawaja, Minister of Ministry of India who attended 2013 CHINA MINING in Tianjin this year said, "This event fully demonstrates China`s achievements in the mining sector, and also provides a communication and dialogue platform among different enterprises and countries."

Khawaja said that the government departments, industry associations and enterprises of both sides negotiated with each other during the event, updated memorandum of understanding and the two sides agreed to further strengthen the cooperation in the mining technologies including geological mapping and geochemical studies.

"China and India are neighbors. We are all economic powers but developing countries. We hope that both countries can make use of their own advantages, promote the development of mining science and technology. And on the basis of mutual benefits, the cooperation between China and India in the future will have a broader outlook. "Khawaja said. （translated by TLRHVC）

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year. As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2014 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin on October 20-23, 2014. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 16th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us. For more information about CHINA MINING 2014, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

Chinese steelmaker turns to Africa for growth

Source: www.chinamining.org  Citation: China Daily  Date: May 06, 2014

Wuhan Iron and Steel says it is heavily dependent on raw material supplies from Africa.

Chinese steelmaker turns to Africa to offset tough market conditions at home

When the going gets tough, Wuhan Iron and Steel gets going seems to be the refrain that is propelling the Chinese steelmaker to dig deeper in Africa for natural resources, even as it encounters rough headwinds in the domestic market.

Though China`s largest flat-rolled alloy steel producer has been tapping overseas markets, especially in Africa, to bolster raw material supplies, it has come with increased risks, says Song Ruilin, general manager of the Central African division at Wuhan Iron and Steel.

"We really do not have much of a choice as our domestic operations are heavily dependent on raw material supplies from Africa," he says.

According to Song, like other Chinese steel companies, Wuhan Steel too had its heyday a decade ago, when steel was in short supply and demand had peaked. That situation reversed a few years ago with supplies far outstripping demand.

Companies like Wuhan Steel felt the pinch even more after the government decided to focus more on sustainable development, rather than infrastructure-led development, company officials say.

By 2013, the company was forced to cut steel production capacity to 40 million tons a year. Its iron ore requirements had by then reached 64 million tons. With the mines owned by the company not enough to meet the demand, the company had to rely on overseas resources to make up the shortfall, Song says.

"A decade ago, looking for overseas iron ore mines meant more profits. But the same now comes with added responsibilities," he says.

Last year, the overall profit margin of the steel industry was only 0.13 percent, and about 40 percent of the companies were running in deficit, say statistics provided by the China Iron and Steel Association. Association sources say that the profit from a ton of steel was not even enough to buy an ice cream, indicating the really wafer-thin margins that the industry is operating in.

"The capacity is there and so also the workers. We have no choice but to keep the plant humming, even with the slim profit margins," Song says.

Talking more about the company`s overseas iron ore supplies, Song says the company signed its first major iron ore deal in Canada in 2009, for an estimated transaction value of about $4 billion.

However, the Chinese steelmaker is betting big on the Bong mine in the Western African nation of Liberia. Spread over 78.47 sq km, and with proven resources of more than 4.09 billion metric tons, the mine is expected to provide the Chinese company with 10 million metric tons of high-quality iron ore every year when it starts mass production in 2017.

The first phase of the mining project currently provides Wuhan Steel with 1 million metric tons of iron ore every year. The project is a joint venture between Wuhan Iron and Steel, China Development Bank and a private Chinese company. Wuhan Iron and Steel holds a 60 percent stake in the project and is responsible for day-to-day operations, Song says.

What really makes the Liberian mine an attractive investment is that most of the iron ore is at shallow depths, making extraction easy. The ore-bearing vein is also continuous, giving optimism for sustained growth. "Over the next three to five years, we will increase our investment to $2 billion," say company officials.

The mining deal is also the biggest foreign investment deal in Liberia to date and provides jobs to more than 300 local people. "Due to the civil war, there are not too many skilled workers in Liberia. We are providing regular training sessions so that we can train and employ more workers locally," Song says.

Wuhan Steel is also investing in an iron ore mine in Madagascar. To date, the company has proven overseas iron ore reserves of 40 billion tons, through acquisitions, joint ventures and stake deals.

Although most of its mines are in the pre-exploratory stage and not yet able to cover a majority of the raw material requirements, the company says overseas iron ore resources will gradually become the mainstay.

At the same time, company officials admit that tapping natural resources is not that easy in Africa. Giles Taylor, head of the steel and mineral division at Standard Chartered Bank`s corporate finance department, says that several African countries have realized the strategic value of their natural resources and are raising the entry barriers for foreign investors.

For instance, Guinea has recently passed legislation that automatically gives the government a 15 percent stake in all mining ventures. Zimbabwe, on the other hand, requires the localization rate (including hiring local workers and processing locally) of a foreign company to be above 51 percent. The Democratic Republic of Congo has recently suggested raising the free government stake among resource companies from 15 percent to 35 percent.

"In some countries, corruption is still a big issue," Taylor says, adding this lack of transparency is also creating hardships for investors.

Wuhan Iron and Steel also feels the same pressures but company officials are confident about facing the situation.

"Many African countries need to rejuvenate their economies. Without good agricultural or manufacturing bases, they have to rely on selling mining rights for quick money. But after decades of development, they have got some bargaining chips in hand, and they want to use it as leverage," Song says.

To bid for the mining rights among more competitors and a harsher regulatory environment, the company has to take care of all parties` benefits: African governments, local workers and themselves.

With the contract for the iron ore mine in Liberia, Wuhan Iron and Steel had to sign a lengthy document specifying its rights and obligations, Song says. For example, the company`s rights include using the harbor and mining the iron ore, and their obligations include paying taxes to the government and hiring a certain number of local workers.

Though the market is getting more regulated, the fight for resources is transforming China. From 2002 to 2008, private Chinese companies were more enthusiastic in buying mining rights than state companies, but now everyone seems to be more cautious, Song says.

"In terms of international competition, the multinationals from Europe and the US seem to be more interested in oil and gas resources. The competition for mining rights is not as fierce," Song says.

For historic reasons, Western countries, especially the former colonial powers, still own a large proportion of oil and gas rights in Africa, and few Chinese companies have managed to break into this area.

"It is hard to manage resources business in Africa, but in the long run, there are several opportunities," Song says. "There are no steel companies in most of the African countries. They will need foreign companies to create the manufacturing infrastructure for them."

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year.  As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2014 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin on November 20^th-23^rd, 2014. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 16^th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us.  For more information about CHINA MINING 2014, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

Michael Chender from SNL Metals Economics Group Delivered a Speech

Source： www.mlr.gov.cn  Citation：www.mlr.gov.cn  Date：Nov.03, 2013

(Photo by Tao Wei Xu Xiaojing)

The keynote Session of CHINA MING 2013 was held in the morning of Nov.03, 2013 in Tianjin, with the theme "Opportunity, Challenge , Development". Mr. Michael Chender, Strategic Advisor and Founder, SNL Metals Economics Group, delivered a Speech：“Challenges and Opportunities: in an unpredictable world , what can we predict ?” (translated by TLRHVC)

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year. As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2013 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin on November 2-5, 2013. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 15th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us. For more information about CHINA MINING 2013, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

China has Built the Global Mineral Resources Database

At present, the global mineral resources database which was built by China Geological Survey has covered more than 60 countries and regions. At the CHINA MINING forum-- private enterprises investment forum of “going outside” held on Nov. 2, Lian Changyun, director of China Geological Survey, disclosed that the database would be projected to cover more than 80 countries and regions by 2015, and provide more services about geological mineral database for “going outside” for Chinese enterprises.

It was introduced that this database would not only include different levels of all kinds of maps of drawing and remote sensing topographic map data of all continents and countries all over the world ,but also provide mining development information like mining rights registration status. Besides sending and publishing these data and information at mining exploration forum abroad, China Geological Survey will also provide the online inquiry services for enterprises.

Lian Yunchang expressed that the building of the system showed our country has formatted the mechanism of government setting up stage, technology going ahead, supporting enterprises "going outside" and developing international mining cooperation. Because of application of the mechanism, China Min-metals Group has gained some high quality mining rights abroad.

Lian Yunchang said the mechanism is consistent with international conventions. Countries as America, England, Japan, Korea, Canada, etc. have successively taken advantage of the mechanism to provide basic geological information through developing the international cooperation of taking the basic geological survey and resources potentiality assessment as the main content, so that reduced the risks of prospecting overseas for their domestic enterprises

It was introduced China Geological Survey has developed the search of metallogenic regularity of the global main ore-forming zone to meet the needs of  mutually beneficial cooperation of the global mining industry in recent years and conducted the international cooperation with many countries successively in geological mapping, geophysics , geochemical investigation. From nothing to everything, from small to large, outside geological works have made great progress in range and extent.（translated by TLRHVC）

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year.  As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2013 were held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin on November 2-5, 2013.
please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

Chinese steel industry makes big losses in first quarter of 2014

Source: www.chinamining.org  Citation: Global Times  Date: Apr.29, 2014

The first quarter of 2014 has been the "coldest winter" for China`s iron and steel industry since 2000, as more steel mills saw deficits and steel output continues to rise, indicated a news release by China Iron and Steel Association (CISA) Monday.

In the first three months of 2014, steel firms tracked by CISA saw a total loss of 2.33 billion yuan ($373 million), compared to a 3.28 billion yuan profit gained in the same period of 2013, according to the first quarter report released by CISA.

About 45 percent of 315 Chinese steel companies monitored by the association suffered losses in the first quarter, 15 percent higher than the first quarter of 2013, the report said.

The first quarter has always been a slow season due to the low demand caused by cold weather and the Spring Festival holidays, Zhang Changfu, secretary-general of the CISA, told a conference on Monday.

The steel price at the end of March saw a 11.28 percent year-on-year decline and the price has been dropping for seven consecutive months, the report said.

Another sign of weak market demand is the surging steel inventory registered in the first quarter. At the end of March, the steel inventory reached 19.41 million tons, 43.65 percent higher than the beginning of January, according to the report.

The rapidly increasing inventory indicates production overcapacity. China`s crude steel output accounted for 49.97 percent of global output in the first quarter, the report said, only 0.03 percentage points lower than same period of last year.

The market demand for steel will not pick up against the backdrop of an economy facing downward pressure and the output will not see a big fall because of the large base of overcapacity, Zhang said, predicting the crude steel output will still have a 3 percent year-on-year growth in 2014.

In a bid to tackle overcapacity, China`s State Council has already released a guideline in October 2013, tightening control of capacity expansion and phasing out obsolete plants that fail to meet environment protection standards.

In the first quarter, Chinese steel industry saw an overall 3.34 percent year-on-year decrease on fixed-assets investment but fixed- assets investment in the private sector increased by 6.65 percent from last year, the report said.

Under pressure from overcapacity and the government`s requirements for capacity control, it became harder for steel enterprises to get loans from banks, he said.

Now banks have scaled down loans to steel companies and have also raised lending rates, weighing on steel mills` liquidity, Zhang said.

Although the steel industry is in a sluggish condition, there are still some companies that have good operations and are gaining profits, Zhang said, expecting banks can support the development of these firms.

For instance, Fangda Special Steel Technology Co, which is based in Nanchang, East China`s Jiangxi Province, made a 563 million yuan profit in 2013, with 7.5 percent year-on-year growth, according to its 2013 earnings report released on April 2.

Fangda owns three iron mines, which helps the company to reduce costs and control iron ore quality, Wang Guoqing, a research director at Beijing Lange Steel Information Research Center, told the Global Times.

Moreover, Fangda has high-quality products to help it maintain a stable market share and as a Shanghai-listed private company, it can get financing from the stock market to offset the sluggish industry`s negative impact on its capital chain, Wang said.

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year.  As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2014 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin on November 20^th-23^rd, 2014. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 16^th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us.  For more information about CHINA MINING 2014, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

Sky-high “Chinese Queen” Appeared Yesterday

Source: www.mlr.gov.cn  Citation: www.enorth.com.cn  Date: Nov.2, 2013

The mineral is the flowers of stone which can be turned into energy for human. At the CHINA MINING 2013, opened at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin yesterday, rare mineral specimens which are native to all over the world were displayed, showing the charm of natural crystals. The most precious mineral specimen is called “Chinese queen”, whose selling price (converted into Renminbi) is RMB 22million, attracting all the visitors’ attention.

Dozens of rare mineral specimens were first displayed at CHINA MINING 2013 .Beautiful mineral crystals with gorgeous colors are authentically from nature without excessive sanding and machining. In Recent years, the collection of mineral specimens appeared in public view, for example the rhodochrosite “Chinese queen” from Wuzhou, Guangxi, which is entirely “Chinese red” . Its size is 40×22×36cm which is very unusual and its value is very high. The exhibits included emeralds from Zambia, pink tourmaline from Afghanistan and blue copper ore Malachite. The biggest is natural copper from Michigan which weighs in at roughly350 kilograms. Besides, others like MD4 four rotors UAV series from German, field Prospecting equipments, etc. were also exhibited at CHINA MINING 2013.

As one of the top mining conferences in the world, CHINA MINING will hold three main forums including theme forum, foreign mining minister forum and Enterprise Development Forum and 34 streams and 10 promotion conferences of national projects this year. At the same time, the CHINA MINING Organizing Committee confirmed CHINA MINING Congress and Expo will be held in Tianjin once a year from Oct. 20th to Oct. 23rd every year in future.  （translated by TLRHVC）

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year.  As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2013 was held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin on November 2-5, 2013. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 15th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us. For more information about CHINA MINING 2013, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

China to shut down 2,000 coal mines this year

Source: www.chinamining.org  Citation: www.mining.com  Date: Apr.04, 2014

China will shut down roughly 2,000 small coal mines this year, with a total capacity of 117.48 million tonnes, as part of the Beijing`s ongoing plan to reduce the alarming rates of air pollution and reduce the nation`s dependency on the fossil fuel.

According to the National Energy Administration (NEA), the first small-scale mines to go will be those old and depleting ones, in the east of the country. The government will also consolidate production from operations located in remote parts, including the vast northwestern regions of Inner Mongolia and Xinjiang, Reuters reports.

At the same time, China aims to increase the share of non-fossil fuels in its overall energy consumption to 10.7% in 2014, in an effort to further improve its energy efficiency, control energy consumption, optimize the energy mix and guarantee energy supply, said the NEA last month.

The idea of closing down mines is nothing new to China, which accounts for about 50% of the world`s coal consumption. In 2012 alone Beijing shut down 628 medium-sized coal mines, improved technological processes of 622 mines, merged 388 mines and phased out 97.8 million tons of outdated production facilities.

Last October, the Chinese government vowed to close at least 2,000 small coal mines by 2015 over safety concerns. The news came only a month after it said it wouldn`t allow more coal-fuelled installations near Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong, in an effort to curb air pollution in the country`s most industrial regions.

China`s dependence on coal is well known. Annual consumption exceeded 1 billion short tons per year in 1988 and has exploded since then, to about 4 billion tons last year. This means the Asian giant gets about 70% of its energy from the fossil fuel, a number the government hopes to reduce to 65% by 2017.

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year.  As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2014 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin on November 20^th-23^rd, 2014. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 16^th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us.  For more information about CHINA MINING 2014, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

Mining Development Forum

Source: www.mlr.gov.cn  Citation: www.mlr.gov.cn  Date: Nov.4, 2013

(Photo by Zhao Xinhao, Edited by Xu Xiaojing)

Mining development forum was held in Tianjin on Nov.4th, 2013. Mining directors discussed the global mining development trends and strategies for the global market place.（translated by TLRHVC）

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year.  As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2013 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin on November 2-5, 2013. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 15th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us. For more information about CHINA MINING 2013, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.