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
Canadian miner First Quantum Minerals Ltd said on Thursday it would boost its stake in unit Minera Panama SA to 90 percent in a deal valued at $635 million to increase its copper mining operations.
The company, which currently owns 80 percent of the unit, said it signed an agreement to buy a 10 percent stake from South Korean miner LS-Nikko Copper.
Copper prices have been recovering after a slump in 2016, helped in part by demand from top metals consumer China, but remain well below their 2011 peak.
The deal will also include some shareholder loans in the Minera Panama unit and LS-Nikko’s stake in a joint venture with Korea Resources Corp.
First Quantum said it would pay for the deal over a five year period.
(Reporting by Anirban Paul in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty and Shounak Dasgupta)
