Mitsui Said to Be Top Bidder for First Quantum Mines Stake
- Japanese trading house has pulled ahead of rival suitor
- Mitsui is considering buying a stake for about $2 billion
A miner checks equipment while mining for copper ore in an underground tunnel in a copper mine in Chingola, Zambia.
Photographer: Waldo Swiegers/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Japanese trading house Mitsui & Co. has emerged as the highest bidder for a stake in First Quantum Minerals Ltd.’s Zambian copper mines, according to people familiar with the matter.
Mitsui submitted an offer that’s higher than a rival proposal from Saudi Arabia’s state-backed Manara Minerals Investment Co., the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private. The Japanese company is considering buying a roughly 20% interest in First Quantum’s Sentinel and Kansanshi mines for about $2 billion, according to the people.