Copper Looks Favourable After Maaden And Barrick Gold Joint Venture Announcement
The Saudi Arabian Mining Company, otherwise known as Maaden, released news Sunday that it would be joining with Toronto’s Barrick Gold Corp. over the proposed Jabal Sayid copper mining project.
Maaden And Barrick Gold have reached an agreement regarding copper production in Western Saudi Arabia.
Maaden agreed to put down $210 million for a 50% stake in the project. The site is located 120 kilometres southeast of the Saudi Arabian city Medina in the country’s western region.
The purchase will be allocated through available facilities and cash, according to Maaden. The deal is slated to be finalized in the 4th quarter of 2014 and will follow customary closing guidelines as well as require the approval of regulatory authorities.
The company has already confirmed approval to complete the transaction from the Saudi Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources.
With production projected to begin late next year, it is estimated that the joint venture will be capable of producing as many as 60,000 tons of copper concentrate per year.
Currently copper is priced at $3.23/lb, down .88% from last week. The commodity has enjoyed relatively solid growth over the past month and it appears to be on a steady climb following the sharp decline copper suffered earlier this year.
