Soaring demand for copper will help drive mergers, BHP CEO says
Demand for copper, a key element in the energy transition, is set to rise by 70% to 100% by 2050, Mike Henry said
After a 15% jump during normal trading hours, Teck Resources (NYSE:TCK) stock gave up nearly all its gains in after hours trading in New York after the Vancouver-based company denied it was in merger talks with copper giant Antofagasta.
Teck issued a statement at the request of IIROC on behalf of The Toronto Stock Exchange stating that “it is not in discussions with Antofagasta in relation to any form of transaction, and there are no other corporate developments that justify any significant movement in its share price.”
Earlier Bloomberg issued an article citing unnamed sources that saying that the two miners are in early stage negotiations about a tie-up and that any agreement is dependent on the approval of the families that control both miners.
Teck, which is backed by the Keevil family, has a market value of $8.1 billion and apart from copper also has interest in zinc and coal mines and assets in the Canadian oil sands.
Antofagasta is not as diversified with its copper operations concentrated in Chile. The company listed in London is worth $10.8 billion with majority ownership held by the Luksic family.
The price of copper for delivery in May trading on the Comex market in New York rose to $2.78 a pound. Copper is down more than 7% compared to a year ago, but is up sharply from five-and-half-year lows struck in January.
