Yunnan Copper Co, China's third-largest copper producer, is thinking of acquiring a copper mine in Kazakhstan next year, the company's general manager Yang Chao told China Daily in an exclusive interview.

"The company is considering acquiring a considerable amount of shares of a local copper company," Yang said without elaborating.

The company is also considering investing in Southeast and South Asian countries including Laos and Indonesia, Yang said.

Besides investment in the overseas market, the copper producer is also scouting for more copper reserves in the Inner Mongolia and Tibet autonomous regions.

The company said its copper reserves would touch 9 million tons by 2012.

Yang predicted that copper prices might even surpass 70,000 yuan per ton in 2010, although prices are likely to remain volatile over the next year.

"Copper demand will increase next year," Yang said.

Copper is widely used in home appliances, wires and cables; it can also be used in water pipes, largely increasing the need for copper in the future, according to Yang.

China's stimulus package for the infrastructure sector also increases the need for raw materials such as copper.

Copper prices have been volatile over the past year. The global financial crisis caused domestic copper prices to drop to 22,000 yuan per ton at the end of last year from 50,000 yuan per ton in October 2008.

But domestic copper prices hit over 40,000 yuan per ton in April and stands at over 50,000 yuan per ton now. The weak dollar also helped copper prices to rally globally to a 14-month high last week.

Yunnan Copper's profits plunged by 78.71 percent in the first three quarters this year due to weaker sales and volatile prices, while Jiangxi Copper, the largest copper producer in China, reported a 53 percent loss for the first three quarters.

Yang said the company's profit for the whole year was likely to touch 600 million yuan.

Anticipating an increase in copper prices and a change of management at Yunnan Copper's, analysts at First Capital Securities said they expect the company's profits to double next year.

"Yunnan Copper's current performance does not fully reflect the company's profitability as its management team failed to capitalize on opportunities when they depleted inventory. They also failed to contract long-term orders when copper prices were favorable," said Ju Guoxian, an industry analyst with First Capital Securities.

Deutsche Bank's resources team is forecasting weaker copper prices in the first half of 2010 despite upgrading its long-term price outlook, largely due to expectations that China's net copper imports could fall by about 30 percent.