BHP makes new approach to buy Anglo, adding twist to merger saga
Barrick and Mali agree in principle to resolve dispute over gold mine
MP Materials soars on Saudi Arabia rare earth joint venture
Malaysia suspends rare earth, tin mining operations after river water turns blue
Friedland opens $2B Platreef mine in South Africa
EU trade chief eyes investment in Australian resources projects
BHP makes new approach to buy Anglo, adding twist to merger saga
BHP Group (ASX: BHP) has made another approach to buy Anglo American (LON: AAL) despite the London-listed miner’s proposed merger with Canada’s Teck Resources (TSX: TECK.A/TECK.B), according to reports.
Quellaveco copper mine, in Peru
On Sunday, Bloomberg News reported that BHP, the world’s largest mining company, has reignited its interest in buying Anglo despite walking away from a potential deal last year and stating many times that it would not re-enter the frame again. That report was later followed up by Reuters.
BHP’s approach comes just less than three weeks before shareholders of Anglo and Teck are scheduled to vote on the $53 billion merger announced in September. Should it go through, that would make it the largest business combination in the mining industry in over a decade, and the second-largest ever.
Bloomberg, citing its sources, said that deliberations between BHP and Anglo are now ongoing, though there is no certainty that a deal will eventually be struck. Both parties declined to respond to Bloomberg and Reuters’ requests to comment.
Anglo, with a large portfolio of copper assets, has long been viewed by those within the industry as a takeover target. However, prospective buyers had largely been put off by the company’s mix of other relatively niche assets such as diamonds and platinum.
BHP had already attempted to buy Anglo last year but eventually walked away from a $49 billion deal over disagreements over its structure, as it required the smaller miner to break itself up first by spinning off majority stakes in the aforementioned niche assets in South Africa.
This time, however, according to Bloomberg sources, BHP’s latest proposal is structured in a simpler and more straightforward way than last year.
Since the talks ended, Anglo’s stock performance has significantly outpaced that of BHP, which could make it more difficult to reach any agreement on a valuation. Anglo’s market capitalization in London, is now about $41.8 billion, while BHP’s is around $132.2 billion, according to LSEG data.
A renewed interest by BHP adds a new twist to a long-drawn-out saga involving Anglo, whose combination with Teck could potentially create an even bigger copper mining complex than the Escondida in Chile. If the BHP-Anglo deal had gone ahead last year, the combined entity would have been the world’s largest copper producer, with a total annual production of nearly 2 million tonnes.
Barrick and Mali agree in principle to resolve dispute over gold mine
Barrick Mining and Mali’s government have reached a verbal agreement in principle to resolve their dispute over the Loulo-Gounkoto gold mining complex, two sources familiar with the situation told Reuters on Friday.
No agreement has yet been signed, the sources said.
A spokesperson for Barrick Mining did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for Mali’s mines ministry said negotiations were progressing well but did not provide further details.
Mali’s government has put the Loulo-Gounkoto gold complex under state control.
The two sides have been in a dispute since 2023 over the implementation of a new Mali mining code that raises taxes and gives the government a greater share of gold mines.
They met for talks on Friday, a week after Barrick’s interim CEO Mark Hill wrote a letter to Mali’s administration asking to restart negotiations, one of the sources said.
The talks included a renewal of Barrick’s mine license, which expires in February 2026, for an additional 10 years. They also discussed the release of four Barrick employees arrested in Mali, the return of 3 metric tons of gold that were seized by Mali officials, and the dropping of arbitration proceedings initiated by Barrick against Mali, the source said.
Barrick suspended operations at the massive Loulo-Gounkoto complex in January. A Malian court in June appointed a provisional administrator to restart operations, although blasting did not begin until October.
MP Materials soars on Saudi Arabia rare earth joint venture
MP Materials (NYSE: MP) has teamed up with the US Department of War (DoW) to form a joint venture in Saudi Arabia with Maaden, the kingdom’s flagship mining company, to build a rare earth refinery. Shares of the company rose.
MP Materials owns and operates Mountain Pass, the only rare earths mine in the US.
The formation of this joint venture represents “a pivotal step toward rebalancing the global rare earth supply chain and aligns with US economic and national security interests,” MP said in a press release Wednesday.
The company is currently the only fully integrated producer of rare earth materials in the US, with operations centered around its Mountain Pass mine and processing facility in California and magnet production site in Texas.
The joint venture announcement comes a day after Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman pledged to invest $1 trillion in the US, further deepening the commercial ties between the two nations.
Shares of MP Materials jumped by 8.2% during the early hours of trading on the news, taking the Las Vegas-based miner’s market capitalization to nearly $11 billion. Year to date, the stock has risen by nearly 290%, buoyed by its partnership with the US government, including a $400 million purchase of the company’s preferred shares by the DoW.
The Saudi JV builds on the multi-billion-dollar public-private partnership that MP and DoW announced in July 2025 to bolster America’s rare earth supply chain and reduce its reliance on China, which dominates the market with a 60% share of mine supply and almost all of the processing capacity.
Under that partnership, MP plans to invest as much as $1 billion to significantly expand the US rare earth refining and magnet manufacturing capacity in the coming years. Amongst the key investments will be the development of a second magnet manufacturing facility in the US and an expansion of its heavy rare earth separation capabilities at Mountain Pass.
Prior to the DoW partnership, MP had signed a memorandum of understanding with Saudi Arabia to develop a rare earths supply chain in the kingdom, from mining to magnet production. That agreement was signed during the US-Saudi Investment Forum 2025 in Riyadh.
Malaysia suspends rare earth, tin mining operations after river water turns blue
Malaysia has suspended operations at a rare earth site and two tin mines in western Perak state following an investigation into complaints that a stretch of a major river had turned bright blue, the natural resources and environment ministry said.
Minister Johari Abdul Ghani told parliament on Wednesday that authorities had launched a probe after public reports about discoloured water in a part of the Perak River, the second-longest on the Malaysian peninsula.
Initial investigations found discharges at the rare earths mining site, operated by MCRE Resources Sdn Bhd, which matched the colour of the water in the river, Johari said.
Radiation readings at the site were also found to be as high as 13 becquerels, far above the 1 becquerel limit permitted under the project’s initial environmental impact assessment report, he added.
“The investigation is now focusing on the type of chemicals used in the mining process and whether it is consistent with the information that has been reported to the authorities,” Johari said.
MCRE did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Johari’s remarks.
According to its website, MCRE operates Malaysia’s pioneer rare earths mining project, using a method known as in-situ leaching, with technology shared by Chinese rare earth firms.
Malaysia, which has an estimated 16 million tons of rare earths deposits, has been seeking to capitalize on growing global demand for the minerals, but lacks the technological know-how to mine and process them.
It has been in talks with China, the world’s leader in rare earths mining and processing, on a potential refinery, and last month signed a deal with the United States on rare earths development.
Billionaire Robert Friedland’s Ivanhoe Mines (TSX: IVN) has cut the ribbon on its long-awaited Platreef platinum mine, with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa presiding as Johannesburg hosts G20 delegations this week.
The opening caps a 37-year effort at what Friedland calls “the world’s largest undeveloped precious-metals mine.”
Ivanhoe fed first ore to the $2 billion project’s stage-one concentrator on Oct. 29 and produced first concentrate during the ceremony Tuesday, with ramp-up now underway. A second stage is already in development and a third expansion is to follow once the mine is established.
“The Platreef mine will be a major contributor to South Africa’s ongoing industrial advancement,” Friedland said Tuesday in a release.
Production
Platreef, located 270 km northeast of Johannesburg, is to produce platinum-palladium-rhodium-gold producer with meaningful nickel and copper credits. The initial operation is to produce about 100,000 oz. of platinum group metals pus gold. The latest economic studies outline after-tax net present value (8% discount) of $1.4 billion and an internal rate of return of 20%, rising to an NPV of $3.2 billion and an IRR pf 25% as the operation scales.
The mine sits on the thick Flatreef orebody – 18 to 26 metres true thickness – amenable to mechanized bulk mining methods and designed to be a low-cost, multi-decade operation. Ivanhoe and partners hold 64% of the South African operating company, with 26% owned by broad-based Black economic empowerment partners and 10% by a Japanese consortium led by Itochu. Ivanhoe bills Platreef as on track to be one of the largest and lowest-cost primary PGM producers as the project scales.
Ivanhoe shares trading in Toronto on Wednesday gained 2.9% to C$12.52, after losing 32% in value over the past 12 months. It has a market capitalization of C$17.8 billion ($12.7 billion).
EU trade chief eyes investment in Australian resources projects
MELBOURNE (Reuters) -EU Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic said on Friday he had discussed with Australia's Resources Minister Madeleine King how best to invest in Australian resources projects, through equity stakes, long-term off-take agreements or joint investments.
Sefocvic spoke with King on Thursday as part of a trade delegation to Australia, as the two countries seek to hammer out a free trade agreement that may include supply of critical minerals.
"We did the first such selection of the projects where we would declare our official interest. I mean, that list should be published very, very soon," he said.
The EU was learning from Japan's handling of its supply security of critical minerals, by strategically investing in mines and processing plants, he said.
"And we want to go in that direction as well."
"We in Europe, we paid so much for dependencies over the last years. It started with Russian oil and gas. We know how much we overpaid when we had to diversify very quickly. We see how we are squeezed now on chips and some critical raw materials."
In terms of an agreement between Australia and the EU, there was "more momentum," Sefcovic told reporters in Melbourne, adding he expected another round of talks early next year.
A previous attempt to reach a trade deal failed in 2023, with Canberra wanting more ability to sell farm goods in Europe. The EU is seeking greater access to Australian critical minerals and lower tariffs on manufactured goods.
