Russian tycoon Prokhorov joins copper field race

MOSCOW, June 16 (Reuters) - Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov has launched a bid for the right to develop the huge Udokan copper field in Siberia, his Onexim Group investment vehicle said on Monday.

Onexim is currently in talks with possible partners in the project, spokesman Igor Petrov said, without giving any names.

Russia's Natural Resources Ministry will hold a tender for the Udokan field -- one of the world's largest untapped copper deposits -- on Aug. 14.

The starting price has been set at 4.5 billion roubles ($190.1 million) and the ministry has said about $1.6 billion would be required to bring the deposit into production.

The ministry closed bids for the tender on June 11.

The Udokan deposit in eastern Siberia contains over 13 million tonnes of copper and is expected to produce 187,000 tonnes of the metal annually, equivalent to 15 percent of Russia's current output.

Norilsk Nickel (GMKN.MM), Russia's largest copper producer and the world's biggest nickel and palladium miner, has stated its intention to bid.

Strikeforce Mining and Resources Ltd, the mining arm of billionaire Oleg Deripaska's Basic Element firm, has also declared itself a participant.

Another bidder is a consortium called Russkaya Med, or Russian Copper, which includes state-owned Russian Railways, the country's No. 2 copper producer Urals Mining and Metals Co and state debt and pension fund agent Development Bank.

State conglomerate Russian Technologies, which has steel and titanium assets, has also said it was considering a bid, which could include Prokhorov's former business partner Vladimir Potanin and billionaire Alisher Usmanov. (Reporting by Polina Devitt, writing by Aleksandras Budrys, Editing by Peter Blackburn)