MINEX Forum

Tag: copper market

  • EU Weighs Ban on Russian Platinum Group Metals and Copper in New Sanctions Package

    EU Weighs Ban on Russian Platinum Group Metals and Copper in New Sanctions Package

    The European Union is considering expanding its sanctions regime against Russia to include a ban on imports of several platinum group metals and copper, as Brussels looks to tighten economic pressure over Moscow’s war in Ukraine.

    According to sources familiar with the discussions, the proposed measures could cover iridium, rhodium, platinum and copper. The initiative is still under negotiation and would require unanimous approval from all EU member states. The bloc is aiming to finalize the new sanctions package later this month. The European Commission, which coordinates sanctions policy, declined to comment.

    The potential ban comes at a time of already strained global metals markets. Copper prices have reached record levels this year, driven by strong demand and limited mine supply, while platinum is also expected to remain in deficit. Western trading hubs have been progressively distancing themselves from Russian-origin metals. The UK has barred Russian copper produced after April 13, 2024 from trading or delivery on the London Metal Exchange, and Russian refiners were removed from the London Platinum and Palladium Market’s approved delivery list in 2022.

    These restrictions have reduced demand for Russian metals among Western industrial consumers, particularly because sanctioned material can no longer be used for financing purposes. In the copper market, many European buyers have effectively exited Russian supply altogether, especially as several major Russian producers have come under sanctions. Nevertheless, Russian metals continue to find their way into global markets, with much of the volume redirected to Asia.

    If implemented, the new EU measures would primarily affect MMC Norilsk Nickel, Russia’s largest mining group and a key supplier to global industry. The company accounts for roughly 40% of global palladium used in automotive catalysts, a metal not included in the current proposal. Norilsk Nickel is also Russia’s largest producer of platinum, iridium, rhodium, nickel and copper, and has so far avoided direct EU sanctions because of its systemic importance to global supply chains.

    Separately, the EU is also reviewing options to replace its existing price cap on Russian oil with a ban on maritime services, according to earlier reports.

  • Mercuria lends $1.2 billion to finance Kazakhmys buyout, strengthening its push into global copper markets

    Mercuria lends $1.2 billion to finance Kazakhmys buyout, strengthening its push into global copper markets

    Commodity trading house Mercuria Energy Group has agreed to lend $1.2 billion to help fund the buyout of major Kazakh copper producer Kazakhmys, marking one of the largest metals pre-financing deals ever concluded. The transaction underscores Mercuria’s rapid expansion in metals trading and financing, a space long dominated by rivals Glencore and Trafigura Group.

    The Kazakhmys deal is the biggest among more than $3.5 billion in metals financing and prepayment agreements Mercuria has signed in just over a year, following its strategic push into metals under the leadership of Kostas Bintas, the former co-head of metals at Trafigura. Bintas has been a long-time bull on copper and has capitalized on supply chain disruptions, rising geopolitical risks and the threat of US import tariffs that have helped push copper prices above $13,000 per tonne.

    Under the terms of the agreement, Mercuria will provide financing over an eight-year period. In return, it will receive 200,000 tonnes of copper cathodes annually during the first four years, followed by a percentage of production thereafter. Bintas described the transaction as one of the largest pre-financing deals of his career and noted that such long-tenor, large-scale arrangements were historically more common in energy markets than in metals.

    The financing highlights Mercuria’s growing footprint in Kazakhstan, a market traditionally dominated by Glencore in metals and Vitol Group in oil. The deal comes amid a broader reshaping of ownership across Kazakhstan’s resource sector, as economic influence shifts away from elites linked to former president Nursultan Nazarbayev toward a new business class under President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.

    Kazakhmys, once part of one of the London Stock Exchange’s largest listed copper producers, was recently acquired by construction magnate Nurlan Artykbayev through his company Qazaq Acquisition Corp. The purchase price was not disclosed. Mercuria has also previously struck a prepayment deal with Eurasian Resources Group, another major Kazakh miner facing potential ownership changes.

    Mercuria’s aggressive expansion mirrors a broader trend of trading houses stepping in as financiers to miners, providing upfront capital in exchange for long-term commodity flows. With copper prices remaining elevated, Bintas said Mercuria expects metals financing activity to increase further in 2026, even as high prices have temporarily dampened physical buying in China, the world’s largest copper consumer.

  • Anglo American and Teck Resources Agree $53bn Merger to Create Global Copper Giant

    Anglo American and Teck Resources Agree $53bn Merger to Create Global Copper Giant

    Anglo American has reached an agreement to merge with Canada’s Teck Resources in a $53bn (£39bn) deal that will form one of the world’s largest copper producers, following both companies’ successful defence against recent takeover attempts.

    The combined group, to be called Anglo Teck, will be headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, reflecting Canadian government efforts to safeguard its critical minerals sector. While the new company will keep Anglo’s primary listing on the London Stock Exchange, it will also be listed in Johannesburg, Vancouver, and New York. Anglo has held its London listing since 1999.

    The merger is expected to deliver $800m in annual cost savings within four years, with around $60m anticipated from board and head office “rationalisation,” raising the likelihood of job losses at Anglo’s London headquarters. However, the companies pledged that Canada would see “no net reduction in the number of employees,” in line with government legislation.

    Under the terms, Anglo shareholders will own 62.4% of the new entity, while Teck investors will control 37.6%. Although the deal represents a 17% premium to Teck’s share price, the companies presented it as a zero-premium merger because Anglo plans to issue a $4.5bn special dividend to its shareholders before completion.

    Anglo’s chief executive Duncan Wanblad, who will lead the new group from Vancouver, described the transaction as a “true merger of equals,” stressing its significance for Canada and its role in supporting critical mineral strategies globally. Teck CEO Jonathan Price will become deputy chief executive, with copper expected to contribute more than 70% of earnings by 2027.

    The merger follows Anglo’s defence against a £39bn takeover bid by BHP and Teck’s rejection of Glencore’s £16.6bn offer in 2023. Analysts say the deal marks a dramatic turnaround for Anglo, which has repositioned itself as an industry consolidator.

    The new company will bring together six major copper assets in Chile and other “world-class jurisdictions,” a move that both executives say will position the business at the heart of the global transition to renewable energy and electric vehicles.

    If approved, the deal will be one of the largest in mining history, second only to the $90bn Glencore-Xstrata merger in 2013. Shares in both Anglo and Teck surged more than 10% after the announcement, signalling strong investor confidence.