Sumitomo Metal Mining Co. Ltd. has agreed to sell off a portion of the shares it held in the Republic of Indonesia’s PT Vale Indonesia Tbk, along with its holding in Vale Canada Ltd. to the Republic of Indonesia’s PT Indonesia Asahan Aluminium (Persero) 1. The company entered into the stock purchase and sale agreement on June 19, and the sale and transfer was completed on October 7.
VCL and SMM completed the sale and transfer of an aggregate of 20% of their shareholding in PT Vale to the buyer nominated by the Government of the Republic of Indonesia, PT Indonesia Asahan Aluminium. Upon completion of the transaction, VCL will hold 44.3%2 shares and SMM will hold 15% shares in PT Vale, or a total of 59.3% shares.
In October of 2014, PTVI agreed to revise the mining business contract it entered in 1996 with the Indonesian government, which will expire in December 2025. PTVI must obtain permission to conduct mining business to continue to operate after 2025. One of the requirements necessary is that 40% of the investments into PTVI be with Indonesian capital, and this transaction satisfies that requirement.
The amount transferred was around 9.9 billion yen, and the company estimates that the overall effect on business results will be minor.
Sumitomo Metal Mining and Sumitomo Corp. is also reviewing their options regarding the Sierra Gorda mine in Chile n the Atacama Desert in the Antofagasta region, including a potential sale of their ownership interests. Sierra Gorda is jointly owned by SMM, SC and KGHM Polska Miedź SA. Mining processes include ore blasting, loading and transport by haul trucks to a processing plant with an average throughout of 110,000 metric tons of ore per day, where it is subjected to crushing and grinding processes.
