QUETTA, Jan 24: Two mining companies, one of Chile and the other of Australia, will jointly invest $150 million in a project for exploration of copper in Rico-dik area of Chagai district. Balochistan will get 25 per cent of the profit. Chairman of the Chilean mining company Jean Paul Luksic and officials of Australia’s Tethiyan Copper Company announced this during a meeting with Balochistan Chief Minister Jam Mir Mohammad Yousuf.

The chief minister and senior officials of the companies discussed investment in the copper project and promotion of foreign investments in other projects.

Mr Luksic informed the chief minister that his company would invest $75 million in the cooper project and it had already signed an agreement with the Australian company for exploration and production of copper in the Rico-dik area, where the Australian company is already working.

He said that Balochistan was rich in mineral resources like Chile and had potential for profitable investment in this sector. He said that Chile was meeting 35 per cent of the world’s requirement of copper and his company was the largest entity in copper mining sector.