ANGLO American today announced the sale of its remaining steelmaking coal assets in Australia, a critical step in a restructuring unveiled two years ago to the month.
Anglo said Dhilmar Limited, a privately held UK firm, had agreed to buy the assets for $3.86bn of which $2.3bn would be in upfront cash. The balance of the consideration would be settled through a price-linked earn out.
Anglo would plough the proceeds, the first of which was due in early 2027, into net debt which stood at $8.57bn as of December 31.
“This agreement represents another major step in the simplification of our portfolio ahead of completing our merger with Teck,” said Duncan Wanblad, CEO of Anglo.
The mines to be sold to Dhilmar Ltd include Moranbah North and Grosvenor as well as a number of other assets held in various joint venture arrangements.
Importantly, the $3.8bn offer from Dhilmar Ltd matches Anglo’s previous deal with Peabody Energy which subsequently withdrew its offer citing a material adverse event. This followed an underground fire at Moranbah North in March 2025.
Anglo said today it continued to contest Peabody’s claims.
“Anglo American remains confident that the incident at Moranbah North relied upon by Peabody in support of its purported termination of its agreement did not constitute a material adverse change,” it said.
Commenting on Moranbah North, Wanblad said in April it had been transitioned to normal longwall operations and is now progressing through a ramp-up.
He added that “significant progress” had also been made at the Grosvenor mine since permission to re-enter the underground area was given by the regulator in August last year. “The re-entry and rectification process is in the final stages and operational readiness assessments are complete. Longwall production is targeted to recommence by late 2027 – subject to investment approval,” he said in April.
Including the previously announced sale of Jellinbah East and Lake Vermont operations in November 2024, Anglo will have earned $4.9bn from metallurgical coal mine sales.
De Beers left standing
Anglo unveiled a historic restructuring on May 14 2024 in which it would sell its platinum and diamond assets in addition to steelmaking coal. This was shortly after BHP made its first, and ultimately unsuccessful, bid for the company.
Of that restructuring, only De Beers – in which Anglo has an 85% stake – is left unsold. Anglo said it has entered into detailed discussions with a short-list of buyers which include the Botswana government, a 15% shareholder in the business.
Selling De Beers is fraught, however. Anglo has downgraded the value of the business twice over two years, last valuing its stake in De Beers at $2.3bn from $4.1bn.
“Anglo American is committed to divesting De Beers and we continue to progress a formal sale process and expect to provide an update through the course of 2026,” said Wanblad last month in notes to the group’s first quarter production update.
Wanblad also said the merger with Teck was due to complete by March 2027 at the latest.
