Rebirth of the Mining Tycoon

Chapter 49: A Ten-Million-Ton Super Copper Mine

"You've been to Tibet Province?" Qin Jianshe looked up and saw Li Tang calmly sitting across the desk.

"I have," Li Tang nodded.

"In this feasibility report, your expected exploration target—you wrote ten million tons of copper?"

Just saying the number gave Qin Jianshe a sense of weight and disbelief. "Do you realize what ten million tons of copper means?"

"I do. It would be the largest copper deposit in the entire country." Li Tang responded with perfect composure.

"If such a deposit were truly discovered, not only would you and I become wildly successful, but even the senior executives at Group headquarters would gain massive political capital!"

Qin Jianshe stared at Li Tang, trying to confirm that he wasn't joking. "Do you know that across all of China, since 1980, the total copper reserves have only increased from 53.69 million tons to just over 61 million tons? That means in nearly twenty years, we've added less than 8 million tons!"

"I know," Li Tang said, nodding again.

"If your single project added 10 million tons, it would shake the entire mining industry in China to its core!"

Qin Jianshe wasn't saying this to be dramatic—he just hoped to make Li Tang reconsider. His goal sounded completely unrealistic.

"In my work, I never joke around." Li Tang's expression was serious and unwavering.

Qin Jianshe couldn't help but recall everything that had happened with Li Tang over the past few months.

No matter how he analyzed it, the conclusion was always the same: Li Tang was a rare prodigy in the mining industry.

Experts had studied the Demen Copper Mine for two to three years and gotten nowhere. Li Tang had solved the problem in just half a month.

His ability was one-of-a-kind.

He was someone who could make miracles happen.

Ultimately, it was Li Tang's resolute gaze that made Qin Jianshe give in. "I believe in your ability and your judgment. But…"

He flipped back to the budget section of the report. "To complete this project, you've proposed an exploration budget of 35 million yuan!"

"Exploring on the plateau naturally costs more than elsewhere. A single borehole costs 300 yuan per meter in the east, but in Tibet, it's 500 yuan. High costs are to be expected." Li Tang explained calmly.

Qin Jianshe understood that perfectly well. "What you might not know is that under our management system, any project exceeding 20 million yuan needs to be reviewed and approved by the Group's board of directors. That process is extremely complicated!"

"I realize the funding will be an issue. Thirty-five million is a huge number."

Li Tang fully understood the difficulty he was asking for.

Wukuang Group was already one of the country's industrial giants, with annual revenue exceeding 10 billion yuan—but its annual profit was only two to three hundred million.

Dedicating 35 million to a single exploration project could severely impact operations. Naturally, top executives would have to debate it thoroughly before making a decision.

"Plus, the project is based in western Tibet—it won't be easy to convince leadership to greenlight something like that."

"If we find a 10-million-ton copper deposit, it would be worth 200 billion yuan! I think no matter where it is, the leaders would be interested."

"I assumed this was going to be a small project…"

"President Qin, this project is workable." Li Tang wasn't unaware of the challenges of getting approval. In fact, he already had a solution. "The total budget is 35 million, but we can divide it into phases. Phase one would be a preliminary survey, requiring only about three to five million. Once we get some promising results, we move to general survey work. Regardless, the first step is to secure the mining rights."

"Look at you—already solving my funding issues for me," Qin Jianshe said, smiling.

"This project isn't something I can complete alone. The key is whether you'll support it."

"Give me a half-day to think about it," Qin said. He trusted Li Tang's judgment, but couldn't convince himself just yet.

A 35-million-yuan project wasn't something someone at his level could approve—not even Zhou Tianqi had that kind of authority.

That said, a preliminary survey for five million? That was still possible.

Li Tang didn't get up and leave. He stayed calmly seated.

Seeing this, Qin Jianshe rubbed his temples and asked, "You've got something else?"

"I do, of course."

"Go on."

"I have one condition: the project must be assigned to the geological team where my father works!"

As he said this, Li Tang's tone left no room for argument.

"You're planning to funnel money behind the scenes?" Qin Jianshe's expression suddenly turned stern.

"How could I do that? It's a government unit." Li Tang knew exactly how hard things were for geological teams at the time. "Besides, with such a massive project, would you really trust a private company? Guizhou Province is close to Tibet—logistics are easier for them."

"You don't need to explain. I know the situation," Qin Jianshe said, leaning back into his chair and falling into deep thought.

The next morning, he braced himself and placed the feasibility study report on Zhou Tianqi's desk.

That afternoon, Zhou Tianqi, clearly just having finished reading the report, called Qin Jianshe into his office and shook his head directly. "This project won't work. I don't approve."

Without his agreement, the project couldn't even begin the chain of approvals. It died right there in Zhou's office.

He didn't even give a reason—just a flat rejection.

Clearly, Zhou Tianqi thought the entire thing was absurd.

Ten million tons of copper?

Thirty-five million in exploration costs?

It all sounded way too far-fetched.

But Qin Jianshe could guess Zhou Tianqi's thinking. The man was close to retirement. If he pushed a massive 35-million-yuan exploration project and it failed, he might not even make it to retirement.

Even so, Qin Jianshe took the rejected proposal back with him.

But who could he turn to?

A project of this size would eventually need approval from the general manager or chairman.

Could he just go straight to them?

No—that would be bypassing the chain of command, a major taboo.

Out of options, he sought out Zhao Hepu.

After reading the report, Zhao Hepu was stunned into silence. "A 35-million-yuan project?"

"It's in two phases—five million for the preliminary survey, thirty million for the detailed investigation."

"I can't approve a project this size." Zhao Hepu broke into a cold sweat.

Wukuang Group had a long history, but it had never funded such a large exploration project.

This was like gambling. One wrong move, and all the money was gone.

Unless you were fearless, no leader would dare to sign off on something like that.

Even the chairman wouldn't do it. One failure, and profits for the entire year could plummet. It'd be a heart attack waiting to happen.

And if the supervisory board decided to investigate, there'd be no way to explain it.

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