C919 jet completes second test flight

CHINA’S domestically developed C919 passenger jet completed its second test flight Thursday, the jet’s maker said, but there were questions about its duration and on the near five-month gap between the two test flights.

The narrow-body aircraft, which will compete with Boeing’s 737 and the Airbus A320, is a symbol of China’s ambitions to muscle into a global jet market estimated to be worth US$2 trillion over the next 20 years. It first flew May 5 after numerous delays.

A third of iron ore mining rights to be eliminated

CHINA will cancel about a third of its iron ore mining licenses, mostly belonging to small polluting mines as part of the government’s efforts to improve air quality, a mining association official said Wednesday.

Over 1,000 mining rights will be eliminated under China’s campaign against pollution, Lei Pingxi, chief engineer at the Metallurgical Mines’ Association of China, told an industry conference. “Some small miners who didn’t pay attention to environmental issues simply closed down temporarily to cope with inspections,” said Lei. “However, these small miners will be forced to upgrade their production processes in order to survive, otherwise they will be cleared out.”

CEFC wins preliminary approval for Rosneft deal

PRIVATELY run conglomerate CEFC China Energy has obtained preliminary official approval for its proposed US$9.1 billion investment in Russian oil major Rosneft, three sources with knowledge of the matter said.

CEFC said earlier this month it will buy a 14.16 percent stake in Rosneft from a consortium of Glencore and the Qatar Investment Authority, strengthening energy ties between China and Russia. The approval was received just about a week after the deal was announced, the sources said.

Steelmaking hub hits capacity cut target

CHINA’S key steelmaking city of Tangshan in Hebei Province has fulfilled its 2017 capacity cut targets on schedule, the People’s Daily reported Thursday.

Ding Xiufeng, Tangshan mayor, issued Wednesday a closure order on 1.27 million tons per year of steelmaking capacity and 520,000 tons per year of iron-making capacity across two local companies, according to the newspaper. The province has now shut down 12 iron and steel enterprises this year, it added.