Anglo to sell Brazilian nickel business to MMG

: Metals
25/02/18

UK-South African mining firm Anglo American has agreed to sell its nickel assets in Brazil to Chinese firm MMG for up to $500mn as it looks to focus on copper, iron ore and crop nutrients.

The sale to the Chinese company's MMG Singapore Resources arm is expected to close by September. Anglo will receive an upfront cash payment of $350mn when the deal is completed, up to $100mn in a price-linked earnout and a contingent cash payment of $50mn for the development projects, it said today.

The Brazilian nickel assets covered by the deal include the Barro Alto and Codemin ferronickel operations and the Jacaré and Morro Sem Boné greenfield projects.

Anglo produced 39,400t in nickel metal equivalent in 2024, down by 1.5pc on the year. It expects to produce 37,000-39,000t in 2025.

Brazilian multi-metals mining group Vale is also reviewing options for its nickel mining assets, including a potential sale, as it aims to optimise its mining portfolio and increase the competitiveness of its vertically integrated nickel business.

China imported 40,048t of ferronickel from Brazil in 2024, down by 36.3pc from a year earlier as Indonesian nickel pig iron (NPI) gained ground in the stainless steel sector.

MMG is a subsidiary of Chinese diversified metals company Minmetals.

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