Sino-Korean Minerals Production Co., Ltd

On the 19th, Huizhong Mining Joint Venture Company opened in Huizhong City, North Korea. The Chinese ambassador to North Korea Liu Hongcai (second from the right) and North Korea’s two rivers party responsibilities Kim Hee-ze (fourth from right) cut the ribbon for the company’s opening.

North Korea’s largest cooperation project in the field of minerals has been settled in recent years.

The Morning Post reporter learned on the 20th that the "Wanxiang Department" company, China International Mining Co., Ltd. and the "North Korea Two Rivers Mining Joint Institute" jointly established the "Huizhong Mining Joint Venture Company" with a 51:49 (North Korea called "Hui" China National Mining Association Co., Ltd. ("China Mining Association") opened its business in Huishan, the capital of North Korea, the third largest city in North Korea, on the 19th and began production and harvesting. On the same day, the two parties jointly put into production the Huishan Youth Copper Mine, North Korea's largest copper mine. According to sources quoted by Reuters, the mine is designed to produce 50,000-70,000 tons of refined copper ore per year, which will be sold to China.

"Premier Wen did a job"

Huizhong Mining Joint Venture Company was established by China Wanxiang Group and the Korean Ministry of Extractive Industry four years ago. The registered capital is 44.9 million euros (about 61.22 million US dollars). The Chinese side contributes cash, equipment, materials, and projects with a price of 22.894 million euros. (About US$31.22 million), which accounted for 51% of the shares; North Korea invested in mining rights, land use rights, and available effective assets at a price of 220.01 million euros (approximately US$29.99 million), accounting for 49% of the shares. In June 2008, the joint venture company obtained the "Rock Right Certificate" issued by the North Korean government department.

But cooperation is not a smooth road. In the middle of last year, it was reported that the Huishan Youth Copper Mine “has been forced to abandon its equipment and withdraw from North Korea” because it “was demanded to substantially increase its wages and shares like the Kaesong Industrial Park”. In this regard, Wanxiang relevant sources said at the time that the above situation did occur in 2009, but there has been a turn for the better in the negotiation; especially when Premier Wen Jiabao visited the DPRK in 2009, he also made a special understanding of the situation of the Wanxiang Investment Project. The DPRK has responded and the current joint venture project is actively progressing.

Earlier this year, Wan Guanqi, the director of Wanxiang Group, publicly stated that one of the four things Wanxiang has done this year is the commissioning of the North Korean youth copper mine. He mentioned that the project "we have been fighting for three years and Premier Wen Jiabao has been working for us during his visit to the DPRK".

Universal resource ambition

According to public information, China National Minerals International Investment Co., Ltd. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Wanxiang Resources Co., Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Wanxiang Group. The main business is to invest in the development of global non-ferrous metal mineral resources; the Liangjiangdao Mining Association is directly subordinate to the Korean Ministry of Mining and Industry.

Wanxiang Resources Co., Ltd., headquartered in Shanghai, is a flagship company in the field of resource investment by Zhejiang Crocodile Private Enterprise Wanxiang Group. It has been involved in non-ferrous metals, ferrous metals, and petrochemicals. At present, the company and China Nonferrous Metals Construction Co., Ltd. jointly develop mineral resources such as alumina in Australia and Vietnam, and also set up an oil storage and transportation company in Zhoushan to invest in the construction of refined oil storage logistics projects.

The Huishan Youth Copper Mine is located in Huishan City, the capital of the two rivers of North Korea, in the northeastern province of North Korea near the Sino-DPRK border, 65 km south of Changbai Mountain and close to Changbai County in Jilin Province. The ore's existing ore average grade of 1.3% of the geological mineral volume of 33.1 million tons, ranking first in Asia, in which copper reserves of about 420,000 tons, 250,000 tons buried in the depths of 600 meters below the surface.

It is understood that the business scope of the Huizhong Mining Joint Venture Company is the development, processing and sales of refined copper ore, with a cooperation period of 15 years. Wanxiang Group's website stated that the person in charge of the Korean Ministry of Extractive Industry had stated that the prospect of the mine is very good, and that after the expiration of the joint venture in 15 years, it will also cooperate with China.

It is worth mentioning that before the joint venture with Wanxiang, the earliest cooperation partner of the Liangjiangdao Mining Institute was Hebei's famous private enterprise, Luohe Industrial Group Co., Ltd. In November 2006, Luohe Group and the Two Rivers Mining Joint Institute signed a joint venture contract for the joint venture development of the Huishan Youth Copper Mine Project and won 51% of the shares. At that time, China National Mining International Investment Co., Ltd., a company owned by the Luohe Group, was the Chinese investor. . In June 2007, Wanxiang Resources Co., Ltd. acquired China National Minerals International Investment Co., Ltd. and the Huishan Copper Mine Project was included in the “Universal System”.