On December 7-8, Party Secretary and Chairman He Wenbo led a delegation to Australia to inspect the work of Minmetals subsidiaries in Australia. During his stay in Australia, He Wenbo was briefed upon work of China Mining International and Minmetals Australia, visited overseas employees, appreciated their efforts in response to the downward economic pressure, and called on them to give play to the advantages of overseas enterprises and strengthen internal collaboration.

On December 7, He Wenbo and his delegation paid a visit to China Mining International and were briefed by its President Li Liangang upon the overall performance of the assets, operating conditions and the proposal for major work for the period of the “13th Five-Year-Plan”. Established in 1995, China Mining International is responsible for the management of the contract entered into with ALCOA to supply annually 400,000 tons of alumina for a period of 30 years. Since the new century, China Mining International has partnered with Jinchuan Group Co., Ltd. in the exclusive sales of WA nickel concentrate, expanding its business scope; as an overseas platform of China Minmetals Non-ferrous Metals Co. Ltd. (CMN), China Mining International has assisted Minmetals Aluminum Co., Ltd. in exploring third-country markets and provided North China Aluminium Co., Ltd. with export hedging services. To meet the challenges of plummeting commodity prices, China Mining International has recently worked with Minmetals Aluminum Co., Ltd. to seize the rare opportunities for sales of alumina to third countries based on LME pricing and got prices far higher than spot prices while securing the sales of some alumina products in advance. Over the past 20 years, thanks to the guidance of Minmetals and CMN and the concerted efforts of all employees, China Mining International has obtained good operating results. Initially with a registered capital of USD 115 million, it currently has USD 367 million in total assets and USD 295 in net assets.

He Wenbo expressed his congratulations on the achievements of China Mining International over the past two decades and his gratitude to its employees for their contributions. Based on the long-term development planning of Minmetals, he called upon China Mining International to continue to give full play to the advantages of overseas enterprises, assist Minmetals to seize opportunities and seek development, and conduct business in a creative way in the new trade environment.

On December 8, He Wenbo and his delegation paid a visit to Minmetals Australia. In the office area, He Wenbo shook hands with all employees and cordially asked about their work. Then, he was briefed by General Manager Liu Zhilong and the business development team upon the work of Minmetals Australia. As the first subsidiary of Minmetals in Australia, Minmetals Australia was established in 1988, and is mainly specialized in steel, mining steel balls and iron ore, once with outstanding performance in business scale and operating profit. Over the past two years, however, it has been in operating trouble due to the anti-dumping duties levied by Australia on Chinese steel, the anti-dumping investigations into Chinese mining steel balls and the in-depth adjustments in the international mining market. In 2015, thanks to the effective leadership of the Minmetals Raw Materials and Steel Business Center and the active support from the Corporate Group, the company has substantially improved its operating conditions in the second half of the year through actively cleaning up costly inventories and vigorously developing business in extended areas of steel.

He Wenbo appreciated the efforts of Minmetals Australia in reversing the situation in adversity. He pointed out that trading enterprises should fully analyze market information and sign long-term contracts with a long-term vision; as part of Minmetals, overseas enterprises should strengthen cooperation with other subsidiaries of Minmetals and give full play to the overall advantages of Minmetals. He also encouraged all the employees of Minmetals Australia to unite as one and overcome difficulties, so as to tide over the current crisis and strive for success.

Chairman He was accompanied by Jiao Jian, Assistant General Manager of China Minmetals Corporation and General Manager of CMN; and Zhang Ye, Director of General office & Party Group Office & Board Office.