China's Western Mining sees 2007 net up 12 pct

SHANGHAI, March 25 (Reuters) - Western Mining Co (601168.SS: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), China's second largest-lead miner, said on Tuesday its unaudited net profit rose 12 percent in 2007 to an estimated 1.7 billion yuan ($241 million).

The company, in which a unit of Goldman Sachs (GS.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) holds an 8.07 percent stake, said its revenue was estimated to have risen 7 percent from a year earlier to 8.8 billion yuan in 2007.

Western Mining, which has been actively buying mines and expanding its smelting capacity, is also China's fourth-largest zinc smelter.

It will publish final results in its annual report due for release on April 10.

Lead prices MPB3 on the London Metal Exchange traded at $2,670 a tonne on Tuesday morning, down 45 percent from a record high of $3,860 last October but up 5 percent this year. ($1=7.055 Yuan) (Reporting by Rujun Shen; Editing by Edmund Klamann)