Rio Tinto, Chinalco in Talks on Guinea Mine
NEW YORK (
) --
Rio Tinto
( RTP) and
Aluminum Corp. of China
(ACH) - Get Report
are in advanced talks to jointly develop the Simandou iron-ore project in the West African nation of Guinea, the
Wall Street Journal
reports, citing a person familiar with the matter.
Rio's agreement with the Chinese company, also known as Chinalco, could offset some of the cost of the projected $6 billion Guinea mine project, the
Journal
says.
Rio Tinto is spending about $10 million a month to develop and explore the mine with the goal of selling the ore commercially, the newspaper says.
Rio Tinto last year walked away from a proposed $19.5 billion deal with Chinalco that would have give the Chinese company an 18% stake in Rio Tinto. To pay down debt, Rio Tinto instead held a rights issue and formed an iron-ore joint venture with fellow miner
BHP Billiton
(BHP) - Get Report
.
-- Written by Joseph Woelfel in New York.
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