JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – TSX-listed miner Ivanhoe Mines has entered into a $82-million deal with Chinese Zijin Mining Group to boost the miner’s working capital and available funds for general corporate purposes, including the advancement of the company’s projects in Africa.

Under the terms of the deal, the Chinese company would acquire a 9.9% stake in Ivanhoe through the issue of 76.8-million Ivanhoe shares.

“Zijin’s decision represents the first major commitment by an international mining company to provide support for all of Ivanhoe’s development-stage projects in South Africa and in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

“We are delighted to welcome Zijin Mining, both as an old friend of Ivanhoe Mines and a strategic investor that shares our long-term vision. We have [also] agreed to continue to explore additional opportunities to collaborate on the advancement of all three of our world-class projects,”Ivanhoe CEO and founder Robert Friedland said.

Ivanhoe planned to develop its 64%-owned Platreef platinum, palladium, rhodium, gold, nickel and copper mine in three phases, with an initial production rate of four-million tonnes a year by 2019. Production would increase to 8-million and then 12-million tonnes a year in the second and third phases.

In the DRC, Ivanhoe held a 95% stake in the Kamoa copper project and a 68% stake in the Kipushi zinc/copper project.

Friedland highlighted that Ivanhoe and Zijin were in “detailed, friendly” discussions about the strategic codevelopment of the Kamoa project.

Zijin Mining chairperson Chen Jinghe added that he “is honoured to have the opportunity to invest in Ivanhoe Mines”.

“We believe the high-grade Kamoa copper project, Platreef platinum-group-metals project and Kipushi zinc/copper project are among the most attractive undeveloped mineral deposits in the world,” he added.