Sale of Moly-Cop and AltaStee

RNS Number : 1444W

Anglo American PLC

15 November 2010


14 November 2010
Anglo American announces sale of Moly-Cop and AltaSteel to OneSteel for US$932 million

Anglo American plc ("Anglo American") announces that it has agreed to sell Moly-Cop and AltaSteel (the "Business") to OneSteel Limited ("OneSteel") for a total consideration of US$932 million on a debt and cash free basis.

The Business consists of the grinding media and steel products businesses of Anglo American located in North and South America, and includes the joint venture interests in the Donhad grinding media business in Australia and GenAlta Recycling Inc. in Canada. The Business was previously managed as part of the wider Scaw Metals Group.

Cynthia Carroll, Chief Executive of Anglo American, said: "Following the $1.3 billion divestment of our Zinc portfolio in May 2010, the sale of Moly-Cop and AltaSteel represents further strategic progress as we continue to focus on our core commodity businesses and on the delivery of our major near term growth projects. I thank the Moly-Cop and AltaSteel management teams and employees for their support during this sale process and I wish them every success under the ownership of OneSteel."

Geoff Plummer, CEO of OneSteel, said: "This is a significant milestone for the company and positions OneSteel as a global player in grinding media with participation in the world's largest and most attractive mining consumables markets, as well as providing OneSteel with a great platform for future growth in mining consumables."

Under the agreement, economic interest in the Business passes to OneSteel with effect from 1 July 2010. Completion of the transaction is conditional on antitrust clearance in Canada and it will undergo regulatory review in Australia and Brazil.

Anglo American will continue to progress its divestment programme announced in October 2009 in a manner and to a timetable that maximises value to its shareholders. This programme includes the sale of the Scaw Metals Group based in South Africa.

Notes to editors:

Moly-Cop and AltaSteel

Moly-Cop is headquartered in Santiago, Chile and is a global manufacturer of grinding media, with facilities in Chile, Peru, Mexico and Canada. These facilities convert steel bars supplied by both AltaSteel and external steel suppliers into grinding balls for use in mine milling circuits.

AltaSteel is based in Edmonton, Canada and is a vertically-integrated steel mini-mill, which is supplied with scrap steel by Maple Leaf Metals (wholly-owned) and GenAlta (50%-owned). AltaSteel's products are ballstock (feedstock for grinding ball plants), heat-treated grinding rods for use in rod mills and reinforcing bars.

The Business also includes a 40% interest in Donhad, a joint venture with Delta Group Australia (Pty) Ltd. (ultimately owned by Valmont Industries Inc.). Donhad is managed by Delta and serves the Australian grinding media market.

Key financials (US$m)	2007	2008	2009	1H 2010

Revenue	557	826	642	319
EBITDA	85	132	72	53

The Business produced in excess of 530,000 tonnes of grinding media and grinding rods in 2009 and has an attractive pipeline of expansion projects that position it well to benefit from growth in the mining sectors that it serves in the Americas.

Anglo American plc is one of the world's largest mining companies, is headquartered in the UK and listed on the London and Johannesburg stock exchanges. Anglo American's portfolio of mining businesses spans precious metals and minerals - in which it is a global leader in both platinum and diamonds; base metals - copper and nickel; and bulk commodities - iron ore, metallurgical coal and thermal coal. Anglo American is committed to the highest standards of safety and responsibility across all its businesses and geographies and to making a sustainable difference in the development of the communities around its operations. The company's mining operations and extensive pipeline of growth projects are located in southern Africa, South America, Australia, North America and Asia. www.angloamerican.com

OneSteel Limited is a fully integrated, global manufacturer and distributor of steel and finished steel products. The company is self sufficient in iron ore and has the ability to be self sufficient in scrap metal. OneSteel is Australia's premier manufacturer of steel long products and a leading metals distribution company in Australia and New Zealand. OneSteel also makes external sales of hematite iron ore and scrap metal. Revenue for the 2010 financial year exceeded $6.2 billion. OneSteel services more than 30,000 customers, offers more than 40,000 products globally and employs over 10,500 people. In addition to its Australian manufacturing operations and extensive distribution footprint, OneSteel also operates nearly 50 facilities overseas, with the majority of these including major manufacturing and recycling sites in New Zealand and Asia. Additional facilities in the United States include grinding media, LiteSteelTM Technologies and recycling operating activities. www.onesteel.com

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