Norilsk Nickel has agreed to sell a 13 per cent stake in a Siberian copper project to a consortium of Chinese investors, as Russian companies increasingly turn to Beijing to help develop new natural resources developments.

诺里尔斯克镍业(Norilsk Nickel)已同意把一个西伯利亚铜矿项目13%的股权出售给中国投资者组成的财团。目前俄罗斯企业日益求助于中国帮助开发新的自然资源开采项目。

Analysts said the $100m deal would mark the first significant equity injection by Chinese investors into a Russian mining project.

分析师们表示，这笔1亿美元的交易将标志着中国投资者首次对俄罗斯采矿项目进行重大股本注资。

Pavel Fedorov, deputy chief executive of Norilsk, the world’s largest producer of nickel and the third-largest global mining company by market capitalisation, told the Financial Times that the deal would be the first sign of greater co-operation with China. He said the company had also signed its first renminbi-denominated loan facility for more than 4.5bn renminbi ($700m) with banks including China’s ICBC.

诺里尔斯克是世界最大镍生产商，也是按市值排列的全球第三大矿业公司。该公司副首席执行官帕维尔·费奥多罗夫(Pavel Fedorov)对英国《金融时报》表示，这笔交易将是同中国加大合作的第一个迹象。他说，该公司还与包括中国工商银行(ICBC)在内的几家银行签署了首个人民币计价的贷款安排，额度超过45亿元人民币（合7亿美元）。

“This project is leading to a reassessment of Norilsk by key Chinese financial institutions,” said Mr Fedorov. “It’s a symbolic development that opens a new stage in our dialogue.”

“这个项目正促使中国几家重要金融机构重新评估诺里尔斯克公司，”费奥多罗夫表示，“这是一个具有象征意义的发展，开启了双方对话的新阶段。”

Norilsk’s deal comes as Russian natural resources groups are increasingly courting Chinese investors as falling commodity prices and western sanctions over Ukraine have made it more difficult to finance new projects.

诺里尔斯克交易达成之际，俄罗斯自然资源集团日趋讨好中国投资者，原因是大宗商品价格下跌和乌克兰冲突导致的西方制裁加大了新项目的融资难度。

Sinopec, one of China’s state-owned oil groups, this month closed a deal to buy a 10 per cent stake in Sibur, Russia’s largest petrochemicals company, for $1.3bn. Russia is also looking to China to provide the bulk of the financing for its flagship Yamal liquefied natural gas project.

中国国有石油集团之一中石化(Sinopec)在12月达成协议，拟斥资13亿美元，收购俄罗斯最大石化企业西布尔(Sibur) 10%股份。俄罗斯还正在争取由中方为其亚马尔(Yamal)液化天然气(LNG)旗舰项目提供大部分融资。

The Norilsk deal for its Bystrinksy project is the first time Chinese investors have bought an equity stake in a Russian mining project as opposed to a Russian miner, said analysts.

分析师们表示，双方就诺里尔斯克的Bystrinksy项目达成协议，是中国投资者首次入股俄罗斯采矿项目，而非俄罗斯矿商。

China Investment Corp, China’s sovereign wealth fund, in 2013 took a 12.5 per cent stake in potash miner Uralkali, but sold it in September this year. A subsidiary of Zijin Mining, a private Chinese group, has since 2006 had a licence to develop a Siberian lead and zinc deposit.

中国的主权财富基金——中国投资有限责任公司(CIC)曾在2013年购得俄罗斯乌拉尔钾肥(Uralkali)的12.5%股份，但在2015年9月出售了这笔股份。中国民营集团紫金矿业(Zijin Mining)的一家子公司自2006年以来持有开发西伯利亚一个铅锌矿的执照。

Norilsk did not disclose the identities of the Chinese investors behind the deal, but Mr Fedorov said they included “some of the premier Chinese private equity and state-owned investment corporations”.

诺里尔斯克没有透露参与这笔交易的中国投资者身份，但费奥多罗夫表示，这些投资者包括“中国一些知名的私募股权和国有投资公司”。

The Bystrinsky copper project, located in Siberia’s Baikal region just 300km from the Chinese border, is due to start production in 2017, ramping up to between 60,000 and 70,000 tonnes of copper per year.

Bystrinsky铜矿项目位于西伯利亚的贝加尔地区，距离俄中边境仅300公里，该矿计划在2017年投产，逐渐达到每年6万至7万吨铜的产量。

Norilsk has already invested up to $700m in the project, out of a total estimated cost of $1.6bn, said Mr Fedorov.

费奥多罗夫称，诺里尔斯克已向该项目投入高达7亿美元，总开发成本估计达到16亿美元。

He said the decline in the rouble had made the project more attractive. “The cost position has been considerably improved through the weaker rouble,” he added. “At current copper prices it still is a very profitable project.”

他说，卢布汇率下降已使这个项目更具吸引力。“卢布走弱已经使成本形势显著好转，”他补充说，“按目前铜价计算，这仍是一个非常有利可图的项目。”

Mr Fedorov said Norilsk has had three offers from Chinese companies to sign supply deals for the mine’s production.

费奥多罗夫表示，诺里尔斯克已从中国企业接到三份要约，都是要签署该矿所产矿物的供应协议。

Kirill Chuyko, analyst at BCS Financial, said Norilsk had access to other sources of financing, but appeared to be attempting to build its relationship with Chinese investors.

BCS Financial分析师Kirill Chuyko表示，诺里尔斯克有其他资金来源，但似乎想要与中国投资者构建关系。

Thanks to its extremely low production costs, added Mr Chuyko, “if a nuclear war starts only cockroaches and Norilsk Nickel will be able to survive”.

Chuyko补充说，得益于极低的生产成本，“如果爆发一场核战争，只有蟑螂和诺里尔斯克镍业公司将能够生存下来”。