Anglo American to get $600mn dividend boost ahead | World Mining

Anglo American to get $600mn dividend boost ahead – World Mining News

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Anglo American will get a $600mn dividend boost ahead of the spin-off of its platinum arm in the summertime.

The London-listed miner, which is present process a radical restructuring after defending itself from rival BHP’s £39bn failed takeover attempt last 12 months, will benefit from an extra payout, mentioned the platinum unit’s boss.

Craig Miller, chief govt of Anglo American Platinum (Amplats), the world’s largest platinum company, mentioned it was utilizing the deliberate demerger to “relook at the balance sheet” because the company introduced outcomes.

It can pay out $900mn from its retained money to shareholders in complete, with most going to Anglo American, which has a 67 per cent stake.

Amplats will listing in London after June and also will stay on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. Miller has ruled out the chance of the London itemizing taking place earlier.

“Given the timeframes that are required for the submission of documentation [and] shareholder approvals, it is unlikely that we will be able to bring forward the secondary listing earlier than the middle of the year,” he mentioned.

Miller added that there can be no change to Amplats’ strategy and that it could not look to compete with its former mother or father in mining different commodities. “We are a PGM [platinum group metals] producer. We own the PGM assets in South Africa and that’s where our focus will be.”

Earnings on the platinum company fell 40 per cent to $457mn last 12 months, because the price of the basket of metals it sells fell 11 per cent to $1,468 per ounce. These platinum group metals are largely used within the engines of motor automobiles. 

At a presentation of the outcomes, analysts requested whether or not, after a robust 12 months, the additional payout had been pushed by Anglo American fairly than the platinum producer itself. 

Chief financial officer Sayurie Naidoo mentioned this was a obligatory change to the capital construction after the demerger and that every one Amplats’ mines have been cash-generative.

“We do believe our balance sheet is strong and resilient and will be able to cater for the [$900mn] additional dividend,” she mentioned.

Anglo American bought its coal business in November and can offload its diamond mines, nickel belongings and platinum unit as half of a plan outlined in response to BHP’s takeover attempt in April last 12 months.

Anglo American will retain a 19.9 per cent stake within the platinum company after the demerger, which Miller mentioned was a “residual stake that will be distributed in an orderly fashion”.

This month, Anglo American chief govt Duncan Wanblad advised the Financial Times that extra tariffs on mining firms imposed by US President Donald Trump would most likely raise the fee of producing minerals.

Amplats faces the extra risk of being positioned in South Africa, a nation that might be hit by doable sanctions by the new US administration over a new land expropriation law. 

Asked concerning the risk of sanctions towards South African platinum exports, Miller mentioned he was not “overly concerned”.

“I’m not entirely sure what that necessarily achieves, given the necessity of PGMs being used in the automotive sector, which is a key component of the US economy and the US way of life,” he mentioned.

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