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Camec copper cathode may be up for grabs

October 07, 2009 - 13:00 GMT Location: London

KEYWORDS: camec , central african mining co , enrc , eurasian natural resources corp , josephine mason

Copper cathode produced by Central African Mining Co (Camec) in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) could be up for grabs once an offtake with Traxys expires at the end of this year, according to market speculation

Belgian trading house Traxys buys some or all of Camec’s output. Traders told MB that the company has a 100%-offtake agreement for the cathode, although company insiders played down the formality of the deal. The trading house does business with Camec but does not have an offtake, they told MB. Camec declined to comment on whether there was an offtake, or who has it. Talk about the cathode comes at a crucial time for Camec given Eurasian Natural Resources Corp’s (ENRC) $1-billion takeover. ENRC has said it plans to lift production of copper cathode to 75,000 tpy. The ENRC takeover has raised uncertainties about how the cathode may be marketed under the new owners — ENRC has its own experienced marketing team for its chrome and manganese business, but trading company Glencore International has the 100% offtake for its aluminium. “It’s a one-year offtake [with Traxys] and comes to an end...

All material subject to strictly enforced copyright laws. © Euromoney Institutional Investor PLC.

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