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Chalco says not involved in reported bid for BHP stake

(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-04-10 16:52

Aluminum Corp of China Ltd (Chalco) said it is not involved in a reported bid by Chinese entities to take a 9 percent stake in Anglo-Australian miner BHP Billiton.

Zhang Qing, Chalco's investor relations manager, said that she has seen the report in an Australian newspaper but added that the company's investment programmes remain focused on aluminum and alumina operations.

"I don't know of any plans at this point to expand in a significant way into other metals," Zhang said, referring to BHP Billiton's diverse portfolio of operations.

Reports of a Chinese bid for BHP Billiton come after state-owned Chinalco took a joint stake with Alcoa in Rio Tinto Ltd earlier this year.

Chinalco is the parent of Chalco.

The move to take a Rio Tinto stake was at the time believed to have been an attempt by China to gain a greater say in iron ore pricing, and as a potential blocking stake in a BHP Billiton takeover of Rio.