Dear CIMG Members,

Welcome to the fourth html e-news that we hope will be a useful platform to share news to you and others interested in China's mining sector.

In this edition we have included some interesting news, events, information and articles.

Please be reminded that the Secretariat of the CIMG is now located within the AustCham Beijing Office. We welcome all members to come and visit. As well, the office has three workstations for non resident Beijing CIMG companies that may need a space to work from time to time. If you do need a workstation please book the required times with the Secretariat by sending an email to Auslan or Mary.

News from the last CIMG meeting

The last CIMG meeting with 35 attendees was held at the Swissotel on 31 March.

Nigel opened the meeting and welcomed all the attendees. He noted that the past month had been a busy one with many conferences as well as the CIMG presenting at the Asia Mining Congress 2006.

Jan Klawitter from TBG then presented and made comment on PDAC where he was part of a delegation that included Vice Minister Wang Min. He mentioned that China was still very much a focus at PDAC and there had also been much interest from the Chinese side to invest in the mining sector in Canada. As well, China Mining 2006 sponsored some events at PDAC and one cocktail event with over 300 attendees. Vice Minister Wang Min also met with a number of senior Canadian officials and executives. If you would like a copy of Jan’s presentation please call him on 13911866105.

Nigel then gave an update on the Asia Mining Congress 2006 that was held in Singapore at the end of March. He noted that the event was not as big as PDAC and was attended by 300 attendees. Nigel presented on the investment climate for China that focussed on the development of policies and issues pertaining to FDI in the mining sector in China as well as developments in relation to safety and environment. He said that the feeling on China was positive and this augmented by the presentations given by Leyshon Resources and Griffin Mining. On the same day there were presentations on other Asian economies that all cited China in their presentations. Again as at PDAC China is a focal point for mining due to its need for resources. Nigel also outlined some of the other areas of discussion at the Congress and in particular Enterprise Risk Management and that seminars on this for the CIMG would be invaluable.

Greg Wickham from EGL then presented on the “Importing for Miners�. EGL specialize in the moving of oil, gas and mining equipment and have clients such as Shell, BHPBilliton and Rio Tinto. As many of you have experienced the importing of equipment into China is not easy and nearly impossible for used equipment. To date there has been only known one instance of used drill rigs being successfully imported into the China (Glenn Sheldon made this comment). Greg noted that regulations for oil and gas in relation to this matter seemed not be as strict and that some companies had used the Free Trade Zones to import equipment. He did note that those using the Free Trade Zones refurbished equipment to a new standard before it exited the Free Trade Zone. Greg will prepare some more information to be presented at the next meeting. For those of you who have questions for Greg, please email him at Greg.Wickham@EagleGL.com.

Glenn Sheldon from TVI raised a question for those attending the meeting about the military approvals for WOFE’s . Usually it will be the JV partner who will undertake the approval. In the case for a WOFE the process is not so clear. For those of you who can assist please email Glenn at glenn_Sheldon@yahoo.com.

Auslan made note of the new members of the CIMG:

The new members included – Weber Shandwick, Alliance Pacific, Hunter Dickinson, NGIS

He also made a special note of thanks in regards to the 8 Sustaining Sponsors: Asia American Coal, BHPBilliton, Anglo American, Anglo Ashanti, Munduro, Sustainability and te Swann Group. Many thanks to these members for their support!! Please note that there are only 2 spaces left.

Tina Meng then presented on the Anglo’s CSR initiative in combating HIV aids in the markets that it operates and urged CIMG members to take part in this activities. For more information please contact Tina on tmeng@angloamerican.cn.

As a final note in the meeting Peter Arkell from the Swann Group asked that members take part in the Industry Survey and that he would be contacting members direct. This survey is the first of its kind and information generated from the survey will be available to all members.

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Member Update

Meeting with NDRC:
As noted above this initiative is moving ahead and the CCII will be our partner in producing a working paper in relation the providing a review on China Coal Law. As well the Secretariat had a successful meeting the CCII, NDRC and NIOS last week. The CIMG has been asked to work with the CCII and to provide commentary on 5th Edition Coal Law. If you are interested in contributing please contact Mary.

Environment Workshop APRIL 14:
The Secretariat is in the final stages of preparations for this workshop. The objective of this initiative will be to share best practice information and technology techniques related to the environmental practices in the mining industry. The Workshop will cover:

-Managing And Minimizing the Environmental Impacts
-Policies and Principles
-Water Quality
-Mine Rehabilitation
-Mining and the Benefits to Local Communities

This will be an interactive workshop where the participants will be able to see first hand practical and real-life case studies from some of the worlds leading mining companies. There will be time as well for questions and answers. For more info click this link

Media Engagement
The CIMG is now contributing regularly to the MINING JOURNAL CHINA and WORLD NON FERROUS METALS. The Secretariat is seeking content related to Environment, Community, Safety and Technology. Articles should be case studies, in Chinese and 2 pages long. This is a unique chance to share information and promote the international mining community in China. If you are interested in submitting an article, please send your article as a word document to admin@austcham.org by the first week of the month to be published the following month.
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Feature Article

Australia, China ink uranium agreement
By Dominique Moisi
30 Dec 2005 at 11:56 AM EST

CANBERRA - China will only use Australian uranium for peaceful purposes, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said as Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer signed two agreements April 3 with China's Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing on supplying uranium to China. The agreements, signed following a meeting between Wen and Australian Prime Minister John Howard, cover nuclear transfer and nuclear cooperation. "[The uranium purchases are] solely for peaceful purposes," Wen told a media conference. "China and Australia are both members of the International Atomic Energy Agency [IAEA] and therefore when we proceed with our nuclear cooperation we must observe the principles of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). The agreement we entered has provided safeguards for the peaceful purposes of our nuclear cooperation. We must proceed with our cooperation in this field on the basis of mutual respect, mutual benefit and equality." Howard said he was satisfied safeguards would be enforced. "It is on that basis that the agreements have been signed," he said. "In relation to the capacity constraints, the supply constraints, there are signs that the three mine policy [intended to limit uranium mining in Australia to no more than three mines] is already crumbling. We will examine that and watch developments in that area with great interest." The government will also in time examine what other capacities it had to expand supply, if that became necessary, he said. "It's a little early to be contemplating that."

No difference to weapons programs: Downer

Supplying Australian uranium to China would make no difference to China's nuclear weapons program, Downer said in an ABC Radio interview. It was nothing more than a scare campaign to claim that supplying uranium from Australia would free up other uranium for use in China's nuclear weapons, he said. "Honestly, China has a nuclear weapons program whether we like it or not. It's not going to make the slightest difference whether we have this agreement with China or whether we don't to their nuclear weapons program, absolutely no difference at all," he said. "But it is going to make a difference to their capacity to develop energy. At the moment China is the world's second-largest user of energy after the US. The prospects for Chinese consumption of energy over the next 20 years are simply massive. The more they use nuclear power, the more they will be using cleaner energy and the better that won't just be for the Chinese people. That will be better for the international community including in the contest of greenhouse emissions." Downer noted that the April 3 agreement meant Australia would have the capacity to track uranium produced in Australian mines. "If it's to be used for a purpose other than the purpose defined in the treaty, then that will be clear to us and that would be of course a clear breach of the treaty," he said. "I don't have any worries about [diversion of uranium for non-civilian purposes]. It's just the same as the other agreement we have with a raft of other countries in that respect." The foreign minister rejected arguments from environmental groups that say nuclear power is no answer to climate change. "Some of these green groups are getting left behind in the argument. What they want is China to continue to increase its use of coal-fired power stations," he said. "Now, 80% of [the] energy in China is generated from coal-fired power stations. They are incredibly dirty. Anybody who has been to Chinese cities knows that pollution is a major problem. It just stands to reason that nuclear power is great deal cleaner. Nuclear waste can be stored safely." The community was beginning to grow out of this kind of "scare campaign", arguing that the use of nuclear energy would blow up the world, he said.

Agreements signed in other fields

In addition to the uranium agreement, China and Australia signed various other agreements and documents designed to strengthen economic and trade relations and bilateral cooperation in other fields. The documents included a treaty on mutual legal assistance in criminal matters, a statement of intent regarding an agricultural technical cooperation program, a program for young scientists' exchanges and three memorandums of understanding on establishing high-level economic cooperation dialogues - on coal mine safety and in education and training. The relevant ministries or departments from both sides also signed several protocols or cooperative documents concerning issues including Australia's exports of citrus fruits and edible deer products to China. Meanwhile, a number of commercial contracts and deals on mineral products, natural gas and electric power were also signed.

Wen calls for free trade deal

While in Australia, Wen reiterated China's desire for a free trade deal with the South Pacific nation, saying China wants a breakthrough on a free trade deal with Australia within two years. After a meeting with Howard on Monday, Wen said talks on a free trade agreement (FTA) should be fast-tracked. "On this issue, the prime minister and I reached an important consensus ... on the timetable for this negotiation," Wen told reporters. "In the next one or two years, China and Australia should work together to strive for breakthroughs on major issues related to the FTA negotiation so as to lay the foundation for the arrival of an overall agreement in that field. China and Australia should work together to enhance economic cooperation on all fields and, at present, what is more important for the two countries is to expedite a negotiation process for the establishment of a free trade area between the two sides." Last year, during a visit by Howard to Beijing, the two countries began negotiations on a free trade agreement that would help give Australian exporters access to China's 1.3 billion consumers. However, Australian negotiators have acknowledged the agreement could take years to finalize.

(Asia Pulse/XIC/AAP)

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Regulatory Update

Provisional Regulation on Disciplining Dereliction of Duty in Environmental Protection Activity -SEPA -issued date: 20030228

Notice of Further Regulating Exploration Licenses and Mining Licenses Granting/Transfer Process Management

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Classifieds

There are no classifieds as this time

NOTE: If you are interested in placing a classified-hiring, buy or sell (looking for staff, equipment, etc) please contact the Seccretariat. This service is FREE for CIMG members

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