Bloomberg reported that world’s biggest producer of nickel OAO GMK Norilsk Nickel will end a four year exploration joint venture with Rio Tinto Group and review a similar accord with BHP Billiton Ltd as it focuses on existing projects.

The report quoted Mr Oleg Pivovarchuk deputy CEO of Norilsk Nickel, as saying that “We’re exiting the venture with Rio. We have enough of our local concerns.”

He said “The Syradasaiskoye coal deposit in the Arctic, which is being explored in a venture with Melbourne based BHP, is under review because the project lacks prospects in the short term. A lack of infrastructure and the massive investment needed to develop the coal field has delayed work indefinitely on the projects.”

Mr Pivovarchuk said that Norilsk is focusing on the development of mines close to its main Arctic operations, which are located on the Kola Peninsula and in the Taimyr region

The venture with London based Rio was established in 2006 to explore for iron ore and copper in Siberia. Since then, the government has curbed foreign companies’ access to the country’s natural resources, Moscow based Norilsk’s management was replaced following a shareholder dispute and the company’s earnings shrank as commodity prices plunged.

Norilsk had planned to explore with BHP for nickel in the Krasnoyarsk region in Russia’s north, for diamonds in the Murmansk and Arkhangelsk regions and to examine Syradasaiskoye.


(Sourced from Bloomberg)