First China mining JV turns 20

摘要

Any joint venture (JV) needs a number of things to go right in order to last 20 years. In the case of the Hebei Hua Ao Industry JV, one of the few successful partnerships involving a foreign mining company in China, it was largely a case of good timing. AIM-listed Griffin Mining established the JV with Zhangjiakou city government and the Hebei Province Geological Bureau in 1994. As part of the JV, Griffin acquired an interest in the Caijiaying zinc mine in 1997. It was the first foreign company to obtain an exploration licence, a mining licence and construct a new mine in China. Caijiaying produced more than 800,000t of ore last year. Griffin has gradually increased its interest in the joint venture to 88.8% and has agreed to extend the JV to October 2037.