Le ministère chinois des Ressources naturelles et le Bureau géologique national a annoncé qu' un gisement de près de 20 millions de tonnes de cuivre a été découvert on the Tibetan plateau, in western China. It may well be the largest copper mine in the world. A real opportunity for China, which is already the world's largest exporter of rare earths. According to many experts, the mine could in fact make it possible to extract 150 million tons of red metal in four major areas identified on the Tibetan plateau located at an altitude of more than 4,000 meters: Yulong, Duolong, Julong-Jiama and Xiongcun-Zhuno. Manuel Viera, president of the Mining Chamber, said that “these are exactly Chile's copper reserves, so it's not good news, our country should be concerned about it.”