ITOCHU and Mitsui & Co to acquire a 15% stake in Western Ridge iron ore from BHP.

ITOCHU, a company involved in the exportation of textile goods through shokan, or foreign trading agents, and Mitsui & Co, a general trading company, agreed to acquire a 15% stake in Western Ridge iron ore from BHP, a resource mining company. ITOCHU will own an 8% share of the Western Ridge deposits, while Mitsui and BHP will own 7% and 85%, respectively. Financial terms were not disclosed. When developed Western Ridge is expected to be an open-pit mine with low operating costs and will be developed utilizing the existing port and rail infrastructure, thus helping maintain and strengthen the cost competitiveness of the Western Australia Iron Ore operations, as ITOCHU and its partners seek to sustainably achieve 290m tons per annum capacity. The development of Western Ridge is subject to government and environmental approvals.