Canadian mining company Barrick Gold is considering selling its Zaldivar copper mine in Chile in a transaction of more than $1.5bn as part of its strategy to cut its overall debt.
The Financial Times reported that investors from China and private equity firms, Mick Davis’s X2 Resources and Teck Resources are interested in the asset.
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Both mining companies are said to be pursuing mining deals.
Located in the Andean Precordillera in Region II of northern Chile, 1,400km north of Santiago and 175km south-east of the port city of Antofagasta, Zaldívar mine lies at an average elevation of 3,000m.
The open-pit, heap-leach copper mine produced 222 million pounds of copper in 2014, with production expected to be approximately 250 million pounds in 2015.
However, a source with knowledge of the development told the FT that Barrick may retain a minority stake in the mine.
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By GlobalDataIn February, the company announced plans to divest its Porgera mine in Papua New Guinea and its Cowal mine in Australia in order to reduce its net debt by at least $3bn by year-end.
The company is currently undertaking mining projects in Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile, the Dominican Republic, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Saudi Arabia, the US and Zambia.
It produced 7.2 million ounces of gold for 2013.
