China's MMG weighs sale of Avebury nickel mine in Aus

MELBOURNE, Jan 23 (Reuters) - China's MMG Ltd has held talks recently on a possible sale of its Avebury nickel mine in Australia, and hopes a jump in nickel prices following an Indonesian export ban could boost the sale price, its chief financial officer said on Thursday.

"We've had people talk to us recently and in the past," CFO David Lamont said on a conference call following the release of the group's quarterly production report.

"Certainly we would hope as a result of that (bump up in nickel prices) we may find a sensible buyer for that operation," he said.

(Reporting by Sonali Paul)

((jim.regan@thomsonreuters.com)(+612 9373-1814)(Reuters Messaging: jim.regan.reuters.com@reuters.net))

Keywords: AUSTRALIA MMG/NICKEL