Chairman's Statement

Anglo American PLC
16 May 2000


ADDRESS BY MR J. OGILVIE THOMPSON, CHAIRMAN

ON THE OCCASION OF THE FIRST ANGLO AMERICAN PLC AGM
TUESDAY 16 MAY 2000

In  our  Annual Report published only a month ago we recorded the  active  and
successful  first  year of operations of Anglo American plc.   You  will  have
found on your chair copies of the Report with summarised and full financials.

We committed in the Report to publishing at the same time next year a separate
Safety  Health  and  Environment Report.  Improving  our  safety,  health  and
environmental performance continues to be a priority across the group.

Since  we  sent you our Annual Report there have been a number of developments
which  continue  our momentum of profitable expansion.  We have  also  further
refined our strategy and made important management decisions.

Growth and Expansion

Turning  first  to  our  programme  of expanding  and  strengthening  our  key
businesses,  at the end of March we completed the acquisition  of  Tarmac  for
$1.9  billion.   The merged management structure is now in place  and  we  are
beginning  to realise the planned cost savings.  The sale of the US assets  is
attracting  considerable interest as, we believe, will those UK assets  agreed
for sale with the OFT.

On  31st  March  we signed in Lusaka agreements whereby Konkola  Copper  Mines
acquired from ZCCM the Nchanga and Konkola assets on whose modernisation  some
$200 million will be spent, thereby paving the way for the  $500 million major
Konkola  Deep  project.   We  had assembled from across  the  Group  a  highly
qualified technical and management team which immediately took up the task  of
increasing the efficiency of the operations.

Our  Coal  division  has concluded the negotiations for the introduction  of a
third  partner  in our Colombian business, subject only to due diligence.   In
South  Africa the black empowerment initiative has moved into the next  stage,
that  is  detailed negotiation with one of the bidders for NewCoal.  We  await
the outcome of our bid for Shell's Coal assets.

Anglogold has announced four important developments: the opening of the Yatela
mine  in  Mali  and the expansion of the Sunrise mine in Western Australia  at
costs of $75 million and $63 million respectively; two further acquisitions of
$130  million each - 50% in and the joint management of Geita mine in Tanzania
and  an  effective 40% and the management of the Morila mine in  Mali.   These
transactions  will  further  increase Anglogold's  production  from  open-cast
mines.

Anglo Platinum announced yesterday that it has increased its estimates of  the
growth  in  demand for platinum and proposes to meet the demand by  increasing
its  1999 production of 2 million ounces to 3.5 million ounces in 2006.   This
will  involve  capital expenditure of some $2 billion over current  plans  and
will  be financed from the company's own resources and borrowings.  It is very
exciting  that  one  of  our major subsidiaries has the opportunity  for  such
growth and with it major investments, the creation of jobs and the earning  of
additional foreign exchange for South Africa.

Anglo  Base  Metals'  offer  of $93 million for the  22%  minority  in  Mantos
Blancos,  our  Chilean copper producer, has been successful and  we  now  hold
99.8%  of the shares.  We have approved the $110 million Black Mountain  deeps
project  which will transform that Northern Cape mine from a lead  mine  to  a
zinc  mine.   Our geological and technical skills have converted a short  life
operation,   purchased  essentially  as  a  platform  for  the  Gamsberg  zinc
prospect,   into  a much longer term and more valuable asset,  preserving  700
jobs in an underdeveloped region of South Africa.

Anglo  Forest Products has today announced two important developments.  First,
Mondi  Europe will invest $262 million to acquire 20% of Frantschach,  thereby
increasing its holding to 70%, and 51% to hold 100% in Neusiedler,  a  leading
uncoated wood-free paper producer in Europe.  Frantschach, subject
to  EU  competition  approval,  will acquire  the  Assi:Doman  sack  packaging
business  for Euros 550 million, with an earn-out capped at Euros 15  million,
thereby  significantly expanding its packaging business.   We  will  therefore
consolidate and control Frantschach, Neusiedler, the Swiecie packaging company
in Poland, and the newly acquired Assi:Doman sack business.

In  the  wider mining context and in the new field of electronic commerce,  we
together  with several other mining companies have signed an MOU  to  form  an
online  global  procurement marketplace.   The new  virtual  marketplace  will
utilise  a  common  catalogue  of products in  multiple  languages  to  enable
participants, regardless of size, to trade with a large pool of suppliers  and
buyers.   This  should  provide significant benefits to  us  as  well  as  our
suppliers with a more efficient and transparent supply chain, leading to lower
transaction costs and reduced inventories.

All  of  these developments are taking place in a broader economic environment
that  is  very encouraging for commodities and for Anglo American.  The  first
four  months  of  the current year have been positive, with a  number  of  our
commodities  seeing  price increases, in particular  platinum,  palladium  and
pulp.   The  outlook  for  the rest of the year looks equally  positive,  with
continuing buoyant US growth and a steady improvement in Europe.

Focus on Core Businesses

Let  me now turn to the focus on our core businesses.  We are continuing  with
our  disposal programme and so far this year we have agreed over $200  million
of  sales  in respect of our shares in Johnnic, Ventron and two other  smaller
industrial interests.

Hitherto, we have sought to realise best value on the sale of non-core  assets
to  fund  expenditure on projects in Southern Africa.  Now, as the feasibility
studies for the two major zinc projects in particular approach completion - we
hope to vote them later this year - and with a view to sharpening our focus on
core  businesses, we will accelerate our disposal programmes.  In addition  to
the industrial and financial services assets we had already identified as non-
core,  we  have  decided  that  the remaining  businesses  in  the  Industries
Division,  good  as  they are in themselves, are not core.   Discussions  have
commenced with the Chairmen and Chief Executives of these businesses and teams
are  in  place  to consider our options. This programme this will  reduce  our
business sectors from ten to eight.

I trust this clarifies our overall strategy.

Appointment of Chief Executive

Now I turn to the future management arrangements.  In the prospectus we stated
that the two Vice Chairmen in our executive team would be retiring at the  AGM
in  2001  and that we would separate the roles of the Chairman and  the  Chief
Executive  as  soon as circumstances were appropriate and, in  any  event,  no
later than the AGM in 2002.  In January this year I informed the Non-Executive
Directors  that I thought this separation should take place around the  middle
of  the year.  Accordingly, we commissioned professional advisors to assist us
in  assessing  potential  external candidates together  with  the  outstanding
internal  candidates.  After careful consideration of all the  candidates  the
Board  decided that one of our Executive Directors, Tony Trahar  be  appointed
Chief  Executive, with myself continuing as your Chairman in  a  non-executive
capacity.

Mr  Trahar, who is 50, and is sitting on the far right, joined Anglo  American
Corporation of South Africa in 1974 and was appointed to the Board in 1989, to
its  Executive Committee in 1996 and to the Board of Minorco in 1997.   He  is
currently  Chairman of our Forest Products and Industrial Minerals  divisions,
and is also jointly responsible for our Industries division; he is Chairman of
AECI  and a director of Anglo Platinum and, outside our Group, a non-executive
director  of  Nedcor,  a  leading South African financial  institution.   Tony
Trahar  has  a comprehensive and intimate knowledge of our Group  and  of  the
South African economic and political scene.  He has considerable international
experience, having been instrumental in growing our Forest Products  operation
from  a  South  African  base  into an extensive international  business  with
interests  throughout Europe as well as Brazil, and more recently through  our
acquisition of Tarmac.  We are fortunate in having in Tony Trahar someone with
the special qualities and experience to be our Chief Executive.

His appointment will take effect after our 18 July Board Meeting this year and
we look forward to giving him our full support.