South Korea’s state-run export credit provider Export-Import Bank of Korea (Korea Eximbank) agreed on Friday to finance $200 million in Peru’s Mina Justa copper mine project to help ensure a steady supply of the key mineral for Korean companies.

The Mina Justa copper project is run by Minsur, the mining arm of Peru’s largest conglomerate Breca, and Chile’s largest refining company Copec.

Also involved in the project is LS-Nikko Copper Inc., a South Korean-Japanese consortium, which signed a deal to purchase 30 percent of the copper output over the next 10 years once it begins production in 2021. LS-Nikko Copper, an affiliate of Korean conglomerate LS Group, is the only copper smelting company in Korea.

The $1.6 billion project is half financed by a group of banks including Korea, Germany, Australia and Canada.

Demand for copper is expected to surge as it is an essential mineral resource used in a range of applications, from construction to power generation to electric vehicles.

“We agreed to provide the financing for Peru’s copper project to secure a steady supply of this critical mineral,” said a Korea Eximbank official. “This is part of our plans to strengthen our hold on six key mineral resources, which are 90 percent dependent on imports.”

By Lee Seung-yoon and Kim Hyo-jin

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