First auction of goldmining right

　　A SHANGRAO company has won the right to mine tungsten and gold with a bid of two million yuan (US$242,131) at China’s first auction of a gold mining right on Sunday.The mine is located near Shangrao City in Jiangxi Province.Five companies competed for the mining right with bids starting at 1.6 million yuan (US$193,705). The South Mechanisation Engineering Co., Ltd. of Shangrao submitted the successful bid after 10 rounds of bidding.According to a source at the auction house in the provincial capital, Nanchang, a number of foreign mining firms went to Nanchang for the auction but eventually left empty-handed because the auction was confined to domestic miners. However, China-based subsidiaries of foreign mining companies were allowed to tender.The mining right covers an area of 41,500 square meters with a maximum mining depth of 80 meters. It is expected that more than 70,000 tons of ore will be extracted, containing approximately 500 kilograms of gold. The contract will be valid for four years.The value of the mining right had been estimated at 2.2 million yuan.(Wu Yan)