According to Australia's third largest iron ore miner Fortescue Metals Group's (Fortescue) executive director Graeme Rowley, the company, known to have focused on sales to China up to now, has lately been in talks to sell iron ore to European steel mills.
"We've got Europe ringing us up and saying can you supply us. We are negotiating that right now," said Mr. Rowley.
Shipping costs have slumped due to the global economic downturn, forcing manufacturers to cut output and scale back raw material purchases. Fortescue, seeking to double production from its Western Australian operations, delivers all of its production to China now.
Additional production would enable Fortescue to widen its sales into Europe, where steel mills are ready buyers of the lump-type ore mined by Fortescue, according to Mr. Rowley.
On March 31, Fortescue announced that approval had been given by the Australian government for Chinese state-owned Hunan Valin Iron and Steel Group to acquire a 17.55 percent share in the company for $438 million.