Foreign investment in China's mining industry rising

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Monday, October 27, 2003

Foreign investment in China's mining industry rising

Foreign investment in China's mining industry has been on the rise as China reforms management of the sector to grant investors more tangible rights and benefits.

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Foreign investment in China's mining industry has been on the rise as China reforms management of the sector to grant investors more tangible rights and benefits.

Foreign investment poured into 124 prospecting and mining projects in China in 2002, up 10 percent over the previous year, according to statistics from the Ministry of Land and Resources.

"China is terminating the old system of absolute government monopoly in mineral exploration and exploitation. As part of its reform program, several provinces have adopted the international practices of allowing mining enterprises to determine production in line with market conditions and allowing prospecting and mining rights to be traded," said vice minister of the Ministry of Land and Resources Sun Wensheng at an international seminar on China's mining industry in Kunming, capital of southwest China's Yunnan Province.

China had attracted a total of 8 billion US dollars to its mining industry by May 2003, including 4.5 billion dollars for prospecting and 3.3 billion dollars for exploitation, according to the ministry.

Sun said hundreds of foreign mining companies from 16 countries have invested in the mineral prospecting and exploitation in China.

Sources with the ministry said that to encourage foreign investment, the ministry has streamlined approval procedures and addressed concerns of foreign investors.

A test site of China's mining right management reform, Yunnan Province has attracted nearly 50 million dollars of foreign investment to its mining sector since July 2002, which mostly went to prospecting operations. So far, nine foreign companies hold prospecting rights for 49 locations in the province.

In southwest China's Guizhou Province, six foreign companies are undertaking mineral resource prospecting and exploitation operations.

In north China's Shanxi Province, 14 joint venture mining enterprises involving more than 10 million dollars of investment from the UK, Australia and the Republic of Korea have been formed.

Li Ge, an official with the foreign investment affairs department of China's Ministry of Commerce, said exploration and exploitation of China's mineral resources remained at a low level considering the vast potential of mineral reserves.

He said China is a major consumer of mineral resources and foreign investment in China's mining industry enjoyed bright prospects.

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