Anglo American’s acquisition of Teck Resources can’t proceed unless Industry Minister Mélanie Joly deems it to be of net economic benefit to the country, and not a national security threat.Spencer Colby/The Canadian Press
Ottawa is pushing Anglo American PLC NGLOY to redomicile to Canada as it reviews the British miner’s proposed acquisition of Teck Resources Ltd. TECK-B-T, two sources familiar with the matter told The Globe and Mail.
Anglo in September announced an all-stock acquisition of Vancouver-based Teck worth about $20-billion. But the deal can’t proceed unless Industry Minister Mélanie Joly deems it to be of net economic benefit to Canada. She must also determine that it does not pose a national security threat.
Approving the acquisition of Teck, one of Canada’s biggest critical minerals companies, is politically fraught. Ottawa over the past few decades has allowed foreign companies − such as Vale SA of Brazil, Glencore PLC of Switzerland, and Anglo-Australian giant Rio Tinto PLC − to acquire many of Canada’s biggest miners. That has left the sector hollowed out at a time when Prime Minister Mark Carney is emphasizing how entwined a strong critical minerals industry is with Canada’s sovereignty.
Carney told Anglo American to move headquarters to Canada for Teck deal approval, sources say
London-based Anglo has already made several major commitments in an attempt to win approval from the federal government. It has promised to move its global headquarters to Vancouver from London, rename itself Anglo Teck, and to relocate many of its high-ranking personnel to Canada, including chief executive officer Duncan Wanblad and chief financial officer John Heasley.
The sources said Ottawa is not satisfied with those commitments and also wants Anglo to redomicile to Canada, which would effectively make it a Canadian company.
If Anglo agrees to redomicile, its legal home would be Canada, not Britain. It would be subject to Canada’s tax code, Canada’s financial reporting rules, and Canada’s regulations around mergers and acquisitions, all three of which differ markedly from Britain’s.
In addition, the sources said the government wants Anglo to move its primary stock listing from London to the Toronto Stock Exchange.
The Globe is not identifying the sources because they are not authorized to speak publicly.
Both Anglo-American and Teck declined to comment.
Anglo has already signalled publicly that both of Ottawa’s petitions are not things it is willing to bend on.
In an interview with The Globe in September, Anglo’s South African CEO, Mr. Wanblad, made it clear that the company isn’t willing to relocate its legal home to Canada, or move its main stock listing to Toronto.
“London is very good for what it is that we’re trying to do here,” he said.
Anglo Teck merger is end of an era for the company that dominated South Africa
Anglo plans to maintain its primary stock listing on the London Stock Exchange and its secondary listing on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. It plans to seek additional listings on the Toronto Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange.
Several prominent Canadian mining industry stakeholders have pushed back hard on Canada potentially losing yet another big domestic mining and metals company to a foreign predator.
Pierre Lassonde, co-founder of Franco-Nevada Corp., told The Globe on the day the Anglo acquisition of Teck was announced that deal is a tragedy for the Canadian mining industry.
Over the past few decades, many storied Canadian companies have been swallowed up by foreigners, including, Alcan Inc., Falconbridge Ltd. and Inco Ltd.
Teck itself already sold a major part of its business to a foreign miner. In 2024, Glencore acquired 77 per cent of Teck’s legacy coal mining business for US$6.9-billion. Teck sold the remaining 23 per cent to Japan’s Nippon Steel and South Korea’s POSCO.
Proposed acquisitions of Canadian critical minerals companies by foreign entities have become increasingly sensitive over the past few years because of the broader geopolitical climate, including China’s rise to global dominance in the industry. Earlier this year, China temporarily restricted the export of certain rare earth minerals to the U.S. as the two superpowers engaged in a trade war.
After Ottawa approved Glencore’s acquisition of a majority stake in Teck’s coal business, then-industry minister François-Philippe Champagne said the government would approve foreign acquisitions of big Canadian critical minerals companies only “in the most exceptional of circumstances.”
Shortly after the Anglo takeover of Teck was announced, Ms. Joly told The Globe and Mail that promises made by Anglo didn’t go far enough.
Ottawa’s review of the Anglo acquisition of Teck is expected to continue well into 2026.
Next month shareholders at both Anglo and Teck will meet to vote on the deal. At least two thirds of votes cast by Teck shareholders must be in favour for the deal to pass.
The Globe last week reported that Teck held talks with Vale Base Metals Ltd., the critical minerals arm of Vale, before agreeing to an acquisition by Anglo.
Unlike Anglo, Vale Base Metals already has significant operations in Canada. It is based in Toronto. It also owns a suite of nickel mines in Canada, including operations in Sudbury, and it is a big employer domestically.