Anglo sells nickel business for up to $500m

Anglo American has agreed to the sale of its nickel business for up to $500m, the resources giant said on Tuesday.

Anglo said in a statement on Tuesday that it has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its nickel business to MMG Singapore Resources for a cash consideration of up to $500m.

The nickel business comprises two ferronickel operations in Brazil — Barro Alto and Codemin — and two high-quality greenfield growth projects — Jacaré and Morro Sem Boné.

The move is the latest in Anglo's “self-help” restructuring, which it announced in May last year while rival BHP’s bid was still on the table.

Anglo intends to slim down to just its copper, iron ore and fertiliser businesses, shedding its PGM, diamond, metallurgical coal and nickel businesses.

The agreed cash consideration for the nickel assets comprises an upfront cash consideration of $350m at completion and the potential for up to $100m in a price-linked earnout; and contingent cash consideration of $50m linked to the final investment decision for the development projects.

Anglo CEO Duncan Wanblad said the sale of the nickel business after a highly competitive process marked a further important milestone towards simplifying the group’s portfolio, to create a more highly valued copper, premium iron ore and crop nutrients business.

“Today’s agreement, together with those signed in November 2024 to sell our steelmaking coal business, is expected to generate a total of up to $5.3bn of gross cash proceeds, reflecting the high-quality of our steelmaking coal and nickel businesses,” Wanblad said.

“MMG is well-respected as a safe and responsible operator and we believe our agreement represents a strong outcome not only for our shareholders, but also for our employees and Brazilian stakeholders. We will work together to ensure a successful transition,” he said.

“We are excited by our acquisition of Anglo American’s nickel business which provides important diversification for our business and strengthens our presence in Latin America,” MMC CEO Cao Liang said.

The transaction is subject to a number of conditions, including customary competition and regulatory clearances. The upfront cash consideration is subject to normal completion adjustments and completion is expected by the third quarter of 2025.

Attention now turns to Anglo’s stake in diamond miner De Beers.

Earlier this month Business Day reported that analysts expected that the group’s 85% share of De Beers would be hard to divest, given the weak state of the diamond market and the questions that the rise of laboratory-grown diamonds have raised over its future.

Wanblad said recently that De Beers was only a question mark in terms of timing. Anglo was running parallel tracks, looking at a listing or a sale. But both relied on more favourable market conditions to succeed.

“It would be important for the sector to start seeing a bit of a recovery before we execute on either the sale or the listing. But it feels a bit more positive.”

A sale is likely to be either to someone in the industry wanting to do consolidation, or a mid or downstream player that could help to create value for De Beers, Wanblad said.

With Hilary Joffe

MackenzieJ@arena.africa