Rio Tinto joins forces with First Quantum on Peru copper project

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Rio Tinto has agreed to sell a majority stake in its La Granja copper project in Peru to Canada’s First Quantum Minerals for $105m.

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The deal gives First Quantum a 55% stake in La Granja, one of the world’s largest untapped deposits, which will also commit to a further investment of up to $546m to complete a feasibility study.

Rio said the deal paves the way for the pair to collaborate on more copper and other base metals exploration and development projects.

“La Granja is an exciting but complex project that has the potential to be a significant new source of the copper that is needed for the energy transition,” the company said.

Global copper demand is forecast to rise sharply as motorists begin to swap to electric vehicles and the world transitions to renewable energies.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com