JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – The aluminium branch of diversified miner Rio Tinto, Rio Tinto Alcan, has sold its 50% stake in the Alcan Ningxia aluminium joint-venture (JV) in China for $125-million.

The miner announced on Monday that it had sold its stake in the 160 000-t/y project to the Qingtongxia (QTX) aluminium group.

Rio Tinto Alcan also would receive $13-million for the cancellation of an option right to expand the Qingtongxia smelter complex.

"Despite the challenges of the current market, we have completed a transaction that creates clear value both for Rio Tinto Alcan and QTX. We have sold our stake in Alcan Ninxgia, after being approached by our partner QTX in late 2007, to further our business model of investing in low-cost, large scale, and long-term assets," Rio Tinto Alcan CE Dick Evans said in a statement.

The sale of its stake in the JV project was in line with the diversified miner's global divestment strategy and its commitment to preserve cash flow during the current economic turmoil.

On December 10, the miner announced its plans to reduce its net debt by $10-billion, to sell additional assets and JV projects, as well as to cut its capital expenditure by $5-billion.

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