TSX-listed Ivanhoe Mines has entered into a strategic partnership agreement with the China Nonferrous Metal Mining (CNMC) group to jointly examine exploration, development and the acquisition of mineral projects, as well as considering production, smelting and logistics opportunities in Africa.
Headquartered in Beijing, China, CNMC’s diverse project portfolio includes the Lualaba copper smelter, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), which began commercial operations earlier this year.
Lualaba is the first modern, large, pyrometallurgical copper smelter built in the DRC and is located about 45 km from Ivanhoe’s Kamoa-Kakula copper joint venture (JV).
CNMC also recently began operations at the Deziwa copper/cobalt mine, a JV with the DRC’s State mining company Gécamines.
Ivanhoe co-chairperson Robert Friedland said in a statement on August 18 that “the time to act to address the looming shortfall in key, green metals, is now”.
“The strategic partnership with CNMC will provide significant opportunities for collaboration on mineral exploration, mine planning, development and acquisition of mineral projects, logistics and smelting, beginning with examining the synergies between the operations currently owned by our two companies,” he elaborated.