BHP Group said it was no longer considering a tie-up with Anglo American.
BHP said “it is no longer considering a combination of the two companies,” in a statement on Monday morning, after it was reported overnight that the world’s biggest miner made overtures in recent days.
For BHP and CEO Mike Henry, the move will represent a test of how far the company is willing to go in its efforts to grow in copper.Credit: Bloomberg
It comes a year after BHP tried unsuccessfully to buy the smaller company and comes less than three weeks before shareholders from Anglo and Teck are scheduled to vote on their deal to create a new copper giant worth more than $US60 billion ($92.9 billion) combined, announced in September.
The move extends a years-long dealmaking boom that has gripped the biggest miners — largely driven by a desire to expand in copper, which is seen as increasingly critical for its role in electrification.
Like Teck, Anglo has long been seen as a potential takeover target for the industry’s biggest players because of its attractive copper portfolio. However, buyers had largely been put off by Anglo’s eclectic mix of other relatively niche assets stretching from diamonds to platinum.
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BHP tried to acquire Anglo for $US49 billion last year in a complicated deal that required the smaller company to partly break itself up first by spinning off majority stakes in two South African miners, but BHP eventually walked away following a five-week public battle.
Anglo repeatedly rejected BHP’s proposals at the time as too complex and undervaluing its business, and instead rushed out a sweeping restructuring plan that chief executive officer Duncan Wanblad promised would offer better returns to shareholders. The company has since exited its South African platinum business — potentially making it more digestible to BHP — although it has yet to seal plans to divest its coal and diamonds units.
BHP’s latest proposal was structured in a simpler and more straightforward way than last year, some of the people said.
