Sojitz Corporation, Furukawa Co., Ltd. (Furukawa) and Dowa Metals & Mining Co., Ltd. (Dowa), a subsidiary of Dowa Holdings Co., Ltd., reached an agreement with Taseko Mines Limited, a Canadian copper mining firm, to acquire 25% of the Gibraltar copper mine for approximately C$187 million (approximately 15.9 billion yen at an exchange rate of 85 yen per Canadian dollar). The Gibraltar copper mine is located in Williams Lake, British Columbia, about 600 km north of Vancouver.

Location of the Gibraltar Copper Mine

The Gibraltar copper mine is currently in operation and has minable reserves of 472 million tons. Production was approximately 115,000 tonnes of copper concentrate in 2009, and with the completion of the current expansion project in 2010, annual production will increase to about 180,000 tons. Operations can be sustained for 25 more years. The copper concentrate produced from the Gibraltar mine is clean with few impurities, and Japanese and Asian copper smelters have considerable experience processing the concentrate, producing material that is highly competitive for export to Japan in terms of quality, production costs, and transport.

The three Japanese companies will acquire an interest in the Gibraltar mine through a new joint venture named Cariboo Copper Corp. Cariboo Copper will be owned 50% by Sojitz and 25% each by Furukawa and Dowa. This is the first time that Sojitz acquires an interest in a copper mine in the last couple of decades, and this venture will mark a significant expansion of its copper mining business. Furukawa and Dowa will purchase copper concentrate produced at the mine, enhancing the stability of copper smelting material supplies.

Acquisition of the interest in the mine will be financed through use of the Liability Guarantees for Overseas Development program conducted by the Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation (JOGMEC).

Reference Information

Investment Scheme

Overview of the Gibraltar Mine

Name	Gibraltar Mine
Location	Williams Lake，British Columbia (approximately 600km north of Vancouver)
Production volumes (copper concentrate)	2007: 80,000 tonnes 2008: 129,000 tonnes 2009: 115,000 tonnes Following production expansion: 180,000 tonnes (scheduled for completion in 2010) Other production: 635 tons of molybdenum (secondary product) annually
Minable reserves	472 million tons (ore grade: 0.315% Cu, 0.008% Mo)
Mining method	Open-pit mining
Mining life	25 years

Overview of Taseko Mines

Name	Taseko Mines Limited (mining company traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange)
Headquarters	Vancouver, British Columbia
President	Russell Hallbauer (President, CEO & Director)

Overview of Cariboo Copper

Name	Cariboo Copper Corp.
Date of establishment	March 11, 2010
Headquarters	Vancouver, British Columbia
President	Kiyotaka Tomita (General Manager, Non-ferrous and Precious Metals Dept., Sojitz Corporation)