The Canadian Press quoted Mr Peter Jones CEO of HudBay Minerals Inc as saying that it is considering a series of significant acquisition and JV opportunities as part of its new strategic plan.

Mr Jones said that the slump in base metals prices has created excellent acquisition opportunities for companies with healthy balance sheets, and HudBay has made completing one or more deals a high priority this year. He added that "Hopefully we're not talking about a single acquisition, hopefully we're talking about a series of significant and hopefully to go with that some lesser acquisitions, JVs, et cetera. The opportunities are definitely out there, there's no question about it. People are talking, they want to talk and this is very, very different from a year or two ago."

He said that HudBay is primarily interested in advanced-stage development projects, but will also target longer-term development and exploration projects if they have the potential to become significant assets. He added that HudBay is particularly interested in assets in Central and South America.

HudBay announced that it will close its copper smelter in Flin Flon next year, putting 225 people out of work, due to the age of the plant and the expense that would be required to keep up with emissions regulations. It also operates the 777 and Trout Lake mines, a zinc and copper concentrator and a zinc plant in the region. Its other projects include the Fenix nickel project in Guatemala and the Balmat mine in New York.

(Sourced from www.thecanadianpress.com)