Chinalco to invest 2 bln USD into project in Peru

BEIJING, Dec 01, 2008 (Xinhua via COMTEX) -- Chinalco, the parent of Chalco , has been granted a loan of two billion US dollars by The Expot-Import Bank of China for the construction of its Toromocho copper mine in Peru. Early last August, Chinalco spent 860 million US dollars purchasing all the shares of Peru Copper Corporation of Canada. Toromocho copper mine is the first and the largest single project invested by Chinalco in Peru. After the construction is completed, annual copper output of Chinalco will increase to 200,000 tons, and Peru's copper export will grow by 25 percent. Chinalco will focus on four major businesses, i.e. light metals with aluminum as the primary product, heavy metals with copper as the primary product, rare earth as advantage product, and nonferrous metal engineering project featuring general contracting, according to Lu Youqing, vice manager general of Chinalco. Toromocho copper mine is located 140 kilometers from Peru's capital city Lima, with a metal reserve of 12 million tons and a copper reserve making up 19 percent of Chinese total.