Anglo American has agreed to sell its Australian steelmaking coal mines in a deal worth up to 3.88 billion US dollars (£2.9 billion).
The FTSE 100 mining giant said it will sell the operations to fellow UK-based miner Dhilmar.
It comes amid efforts from Anglo American to simplify its operations ahead of its 50 billion dollar (£37.5 billion) merger with Canada’s Teck Resources.
Dhilmar will pay 2.3 billion dollars (£1.72 billion) in an upfront cash payment when the deal is completed, with a further 1.58 billion dollars (£1.18 billion) of payments depending on performance.
The deal is subject to regulatory approval and is expected to complete by the first quarter of 2027.
Duncan Wanblad, chief executive of Anglo American, said: “Our agreement for Dhilmar to acquire our steelmaking coal business in Australia is testament to the high quality of these assets and our people.
“Dhilmar’s leadership brings considerable experience of operating major mining assets, including in steelmaking coal, in Southeast Asia and Canada.
“We will work together with the Dhilmar team and with our workforce, local communities, government, customers, and partners to ensure a successful transition.”
The sale is the latest disposal by Anglo American amid efforts to streamline ahead of its mega-merger.
Last year, the group completed its 1.6 billion dollar (£1.2 billion) sale of its stake in Jellinbah Group.
Last December, Anglo American shareholders voted in favour of its planned merger with Teck, in a move which will create one of the world’s largest copper producers.
The combined group will become Anglo Teck.
It is the latest major deal by Dhilmar after it acquired the Eleonore gold mine in Canada from Newmont Corporation for 795 million US dollars (£595 million) last year.
