China-led group agrees to mine deal (2)

"Selling our stake reflects Rio Tinto's policy of continually reviewing our portfolio to generate best value for shareholders."

Meanwhile, China is consuming more resources to meet the increasing demand from its economic growth.

"South Africa offers significant long-term investment opportunities," Wang Yifang, chairman of Hebei Iron and Steel Group, said in a statement.

The group, which currently has around 5 billion tons of mining resources, has worked hard in recent years to expand its upstream mining businesses.

As its mining projects start to come onstream in coming years, its annual mining capacity will reach around 35 million tons by the end of 2015.