Anglo American will not redomicile to Canada as it seeks approval from the federal government for its acquisition of Teck, CEO Duncan Wanblad says.Jennifer Roberts/The Globe and Mail
The head of Anglo American PLC NGLOY says the British mining company isn’t willing to redomicile to Canada, as Ottawa asks for more concessions around its proposed acquisition of Teck Resources Ltd. TECK-B-T
London-based Anglo has already made a slew of promises as it attempts to win approval from Ottawa for the US$20-billion deal, which was announced last week. Those commitments include moving its global headquarters to Canada and changing its name to Anglo Teck. The company also promised to relocate many of its high-ranking personnel to Canada, including chief executive officer Duncan Wanblad, and chief financial officer John Heasley.
However, Industry Minister Industry Minister Mélanie Joly earlier in the week told The Globe and Mail that promises made by Anglo don’t go far enough. The deal can’t proceed unless Ms. Joly deems it to be of net economic benefit to Canada, and she determines that there are no national security concerns.
In an interview with The Globe on Thursday, Mr. Wanblad would not reveal more concessions the company may make to Ottawa, saying “there is no way I am going to negotiate this in public,” but he made it clear that certain options are off the table.
Explainer: How the merger of Teck’s and Anglo’s Chilean copper mines will work – or not work
Moving the legal home of the company from London isn’t in the cards, and neither is moving the primary stock listing from the London Stock Exchange to the Toronto Stock Exchange.
Mr. Wanblad cited London’s deep and liquid mining market, an investment community that understands mining and the fact that many of Anglo’s shareholders are based there, as reasons to stay in London.
“We have looked and continue to look at where the best places to list mining companies are right now, London is very good for what it is that we’re trying to do here,” he said.
A contingent of the Canadian investment and mining community is pushing back on the deal because this country stands to lose yet another mining and metals champion following Alcan Inc., Falconbridge Ltd. and Inco Ltd., which all have been sold to foreign mining companies.
Investors push back on Teck-Anglo merger over price and index exclusion
Pierre Lassonde, co-founder of Franco-Nevada Corp., told The Globe on the day the deal was announced that the sale of Teck is a tragedy for the Canadian mining industry.
Bay street veteran Tom Caldwell, chairman of Caldwell Securities Ltd., told The Globe this week that losing Teck is another blow to the country and that it’s a “joke” that companies from South America, Australia and South Africa now dominate Canadian mining after decades of takeovers.
Mr. Wanblad, a South African, said that he understands that some factions of the domestic mining sector have a problem with the deal.
“Canada is a great mining jurisdiction. It has a rich history. I completely get the angst that’s caused by the notion of this hollowing out,” he said referring to past acquisitions of Canadian mining companies.
But he also expressed confidence that by moving its HQ to Canada, and that by key members of the executive team moving here, including himself, some of those fears should be alleviated. In addition, through continuing negotiations with Ottawa, he said it’s likely there will be legally binding commitments that Anglo Teck will have to adhere to that will further protect Canadian interests.
Opinion: Despite analyst chatter, there’s no Canadian interloper coming for Teck
There is recent precedent for this. When Glencore PLC acquired Teck’s coal assets in 2024, it was subject by Ottawa to several legally binding commitments, including keeping a Canadian head office for the coal business for 10 years, and guaranteeing a majority of its directors are Canadian, also for 10 years.
“I have no doubt that we’ll end up having legally binding commitments here with Canada,” Mr. Wanblad said.
“The one thing that you should be assured of is, when we say we’re going to do something, then we will do it.”
The Anglo-Teck deal has already attracted the attention of the highest levels of government. The Globe reported earlier this week that Prime Minister Mark Carney told Anglo that moving its headquarters to Vancouver was necessary otherwise he wouldn’t approve the deal.
A big unknown is whether a rival bidder will surface for Teck that could disrupt Anglo’s plans. Since Glencore already tried and failed to buy all of Teck a few years ago, it’s seen as a wild card.
Mr. Wanblad acknowledged he doesn’t know what Glencore’s intentions are this time, and he said that he “certainly didn’t ask their permission” to buy Teck. Glencore and Anglo are joint venture partners in the giant Collahuasi copper mine in Chile. Part of the motivating factor for Anglo in buying Teck is to combine Collahuasi with Teck’s nearby Quebrada Blanca mine, known as QB2. Mr. Wanblad pointed out that Glencore stands to benefit from Anglo’s potential acquisition of Teck because of this.
“In every respect, this is hugely valuable for Glencore,” he said. “So, my expectation is we’ll work very constructively together. We’ve been good partners with Glencore for a long time.”