Qatar Holding's 10% stake in British mining company European Goldfields will diversify the Gulf Arab state's exposure to commodities, the group said in a statement late on Saturday.

The investment arm of Qatar's sovereign wealth fund said it would pay $775m for a 9.9% holding in London-based European Goldfields-including $600m to finance operations in recession-hit Greece-after Greek construction group Ellaktor agreed to reduce its holding in Goldfields.