UPDATE 4-Teck cuts dividend, sells assets to pay down debt

* Teck to cut spending, sell assets to pay down debt

* Measures to save Teck about C$1.3 billion

* Teck shares plunge 21 percent (Adds details, closing prices. In U.S. dollars, unless noted)

By Cameron French

TORONTO, Nov 20 (Reuters) - Teck Cominco (TCKb.TO) will slash spending, sell assets, withdraw from the Petaquilla copper project in Panama and suspend dividend payments under a sweeping plan to cut debt generated by its acquisition of Fording Canadian Coal Trust, the company said on Thursday.

Combined with a previously announced C$1.1 billion tax break, the measures total C$2.4 billion ($1.9 billion) and are aimed mainly at paying down a $5.8 billion bridge loan as quickly as possible. Teck also took on $4 billion term debt in the $13 billion takeover of Fording, which closed in October.

The plan, which triggered a 21 percent drop in Teck's share price, also affects fellow Canadian miners Kinross Gold (K.TO) and Inmet Mining (IMN.TO). Kinross is buying Teck's 60 percent share of the Lobo Marte gold project in Chile. Inmet takes over Teck's 26 percent stake in Petaquilla, and so will not be able to depend on Teck to help fund the project.

Teck, which just over a year ago had little debt and C$5 billion in cash, has seen its shares plunge 90 percent since June as it has taken on the debt at the worst possible time -- as credit markets have seized up and plunging commodity prices have imperiled the company's coal, copper, and zinc revenues.

Teck Chief Executive Don Lindsay, who was lauded when the deal was announced in July, admitted as much on Thursday.

"There's no question if we had it to do over again, we would have done something differently," he said in an interview on Canada's BNN television network.

"But the world is what it is, and we just have to face the future and deal with it."

Teck said the measures -- which also include cutting zinc production at the company's Trail smelter in British Columbia by 20 percent -- were first steps.

The debt-reduction drive could include further non-core asset sales, and the company may even consider selling minority stakes in certain core assets if necessary, a spokesman said.

CONCERNS ABOUT FUTURE

The heavy debt load in a credit environment that has been described as completely shut to mining companies has some questioning Teck's ability to survive through next fall.

Teck plans to issue bonds to refinance the remainder of the bridge loan when it expires next October, which could be tough if credit markets haven't loosened by then.