18th Aug 2014 05:56
LONDON (Alliance News) - Rio Tinto Group PLC is to review its controlling interest in the company behind a Papua New Guinea mine with a potential gold and copper resource worth over USD60 billion, Bloomberg reported Monday.
Laws passed by the provincial government of Bougainville in Papua New Guinea this month prompted Rio to review its 53.83% stake in Bougainville Copper Ltd, the operator of the Paguna mine on Bougainville Island, the news service reported.
Bloomberg quoted Adrian Wood, an analyst at Macquarie Group Ltd, saying that, should a sale take place, Rio has shown it is "adamant that it isn't giving away assets cheaply at the moment," adding the company will not sell the business if it doesn't get value.
Rio decided to retain its diamond businesses after it failed to identify a buyer and decided against an initial public offering for the unit last year. It also dropped plans to sell its Australian and New Zealand aluminium unit.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-08-18/potential-60-billion-mine-in-play-under-rio-stake-review.html
By Sam Unsted; [email protected]; @SamUAtAlliance
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