Japanese mills to buy stake in Siberian coal mine
Japanese steel mills Nippon Steel, Sumitomo and JFE Steel may purchase stakes in the Eriga coal field in Eastern Siberia to diversify supply as prices increase. Japan is seeking for new sources for the coal other than Australia to reduce costs. A delegation of Japanese companies will visit Moscow on next week. Development of Eriga, 800 kilometers south of Yakutsk, in the far Eastern part of Russia, will start in 2007.