Chinalco eyes RUSAL's Australian plant stake-sources

* Chinalco eyes RUSAL assets, Queensland Alumina Ltd * RUSAL has 20 pct of QAL, remainder held by Rio Tinto * QAL could process bauxite from Aurukun deposit BEIJING, Oct 13 (Reuters) - Chinese metals conglomerateChinalco wants to buy UC RUSAL's stake in an alumina refinery inAustralia, but is less interested in buying into the indebtedRussian company's Hong Kong share issue, two sources familiarwith the situation said on Tuesday. However, state-owned Chinalco, may be obliged to subscribe tothe share issue and take a stake in RUSAL because of politicalpressure, the sources said. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is visiting Beijing andis expected to oversee the signing of $5.5 billion-worth ofdeals, with hopes of more cooperation in energy, trade andpolitical ties. "The subscription largely depends on how Putin's visit goes.At the state level, Russia and China have a long-term friendship,but a big concern is that Chinalco is a state-owned company whileRUSAL is private-sector," one of the sources said. "Chinalco is not lacking money, but RUSAL is deep in debt.The two sides could seek other ways of cooperating besides theshare subscription as Chinalco has shown interest in RUSAL'sglobal production assets," the source said. The asset that Chinalco is most interested in investing in isQueensland Alumina Ltd (QAL), which would improve its supplychain in Australia, the sources said. The plant is one of the world's largest alumina refinerieswith a nominal capacity of 3.95 million tonnes of alumina peryear, according to RUSAL's website. RUSAL owns 20 percent and Rio Tinto , in whichChinalco is the biggest shareholder, holds the remaining 80percent stake in QAL. Chinalco subsidiary Chalco<2600.HK><601600.SS> already has a A$3 billion project to developthe vast Aurukun bauxite deposit in Queensland. "If a deal succeeds, the plant could process Aurukun'sbauxite," another source said. UC RUSAL, more than $16 billion in debt, has restarted plansfor a stock listing in Hong Kong to raise between $1.5 billionand $2.5 billion by the end of this year, sources have toldReuters on condition of anonymity. The company must first settle its debt restructuring planwith more than 70 international and Russian banks, the sourcessaid. UC RUSAL has said it plans to complete this long-delayedprocess by the end of October. [ID:nHKG255026] [ID:nLI262829]. (Reporting by Alfred Cang and Tom Miles; Editing by Chris Lewis)