Resource News
FIRB approves Baosteel’s $285.6m investment in Aquila
By resourceINTEL · October 30, 2009 · 6:13 am · Leave a Comment
THE Australian government has approved an investment by China’s biggest steel maker in a small iron ore and coal group in a further sign it is open to a surge of Chinese capital into Australia’s mining sector.
China’s Baosteel Group has won approval from the Foreign Investment Review Board for its planned investment of $285.6 million for a stake of up to 15 per cent in Perth-based miner Aquila Resources.
Approval of the investment had been widely expected as it provides funds to fast track the development of Aquila’s projects and fits the Australian government’s stated preference for foreign state-owned entities to take minority stakes in Australian companies.
Nonetheless, approval of the deal will help reinforce the view that Australia has overcome some of its previous wariness about Chinese investment and may help raise market hopes of further Chinese investment.
The green light for Baosteel follows the approval last week of Yanzhou Coal Mining’s $3.54 billion takeover bid for coal miner Felix Resources…read more at The Australian
