Grupo Mexico is among several firms considering bids to buy a Spanish copper mine from First Quantum Minerals Ltd., as the Canadian metals producer seeks to bolster its balance sheet after its flagship mine in Panama was ordered to shut down.
First Quantum initiated a process to sell its Las Cruces mine in southern Spain in December after the sudden closure of the Cobre Panama mine left the company facing financial uncertainty, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified discussing confidential information. Las Cruces, one of First Quantum’s smallest operations, is valued at less than US$1 billion, the people said.
Las Cruces would give Grupo Mexico, the conglomerate controlled by Mexican billionaire German Larrea, another opportunity to expand in Europe after it failed to acquire a different Spanish copper mining complex in 2021. Grupo Mexico previously bid on nearby mining operation Minas de Aguas Tenidas, known as Matsa, but lost out to Australian producer Sandfire Resources Ltd., which bought the asset for about $1.9 billion.
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