Processes for Anglo America's merger with Canada-based group Teck are continuing on schedule, the group said in a production report for the three months to March 31,2 206,
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Anglo American, still on track with merger talks with Canada-based Teck, said Tuesday that copper and iron ore production had tracked with its plans for the first quarter and its supply chain is proving resilient against the volatility being caused by the Middle East conflict.
The share price fell by 3.96% to R799.79 on Tuesday afternoon on the JSE after the release of production data for the three months to March 31, a price that was also 33.6% lower over a year.
Anglo’s CEO Duncan Wanblad said in the update that in copper, the reopening of a second plant at Los Bronces had provided incremental profitable production, Collahuasi progressed towards higher grade ore later this year, and Quellaveco's recoveries improved, helping to offset expected lower grades through the first half.
In iron ore, Kumba and Minas-Rio delivered stable operations.
He said the merger with Teck to form a copper-focused global critical minerals champion was on track for an expected September 2026 to March 2027 close.
“While the conflict in the Middle East is creating considerable volatility in the broader market, we are actively managing the situation to address potential adverse effects, including cost inflation,” he added.
About the merger, he said regulatory approval had been received from South Korea in the quarter, with anti-trust approval from China now the final outstanding regulatory milestone, alongside other customary closing conditions.
“Although we both continue to operate separately until closing, the integration planning is progressing well, ensuring that once the transaction closes, we will be well positioned to begin delivering the exceptional value and expected synergies that we have identified," said Wanblad.
Meanwhile, the portfolio optimisation strategy at Anglo continued. "We have resumed normal operations at Moranbah North and the sale of steelmaking coal is progressing well, with expectations for a sale to be agreed in the second quarter of 2026. In nickel, we are working through the European Commission's anti-trust approval process,” said Wanblad.
“We are progressing the sale process for De Beers and continue to assess further cost and capital preservation measures to minimise the impact from challenging diamond markets,” he said.
During the quarter, copper production increased by 1% to 170,400 tons, primarily due to higher production at Los Bronces and Collahuasi as a result of higher throughput, partially offset by anticipated lower grades at Quellaveco.
Premium iron ore production was 15.2 million tons, with slightly lower production from Kumba and Minas-Rio resulting in a 2% production decline.
Manganese production increased by 118% to 759,000 tons after increased production following the temporary suspension caused by a tropical cyclone in Australia in March 2024.
Rough diamond production increased by 17% to 7.1 million tons due to planned ore releases from Gahcho Kue and higher volumes from Venetia underground.
Steelmaking coal production fell by 31% to 1.5 million tons due to lower production from Moranbah North following an "incident" in March 2025, and weather impacts at Dawson. Nickel production fell 7% to 9,100 tons reflecting maintenance at Barro Alto and Codemin.
Production and unit cost guidance remained unchanged for 2026.
BUSINESS REPORT