Mining experts see little industry shakeup after Teck-Anglo American merger

Top executives at Vancouver miner Teck Resources Ltd. and London-based global heavyweight Anglo American PLC have been adamant that the company emerging from their planned combination will maintain a distinctly Canadian flavour.

But one mining industry expert questions whether it was accurate to think of Teck as a “Canadian champion” well before the $70 billion tie-up was announced Tuesday.

“I find it a bit of a fallacy to call them the Canadian champion,” said Dennis da Silva, senior portfolio manager at Middlefield Group.

Da Silva figures only about 25 to 30 per cent of Teck’s net asset value comes from its British Columbia operations, with most of its growth expected to come from its international business, which includes mines in South America and the U.S.

“The mind is here, but the soul is elsewhere.”

Teck and Anglo American are pitching the deal as a “merger of equals” with plans for roughly even representation across upper management and the board of directors.

The headquarters of the proposed new company — Anglo Teck — is to be in Vancouver and top executives with Anglo American plan to relocate to that city. The deal also includes $4.5 billion in spending commitments in Canada over five years, but it’s not clear how much of that is new.

Da Silva said he doesn’t see the Teck-Anglo American combination as much of a loss for Canada.

“I don’t look at it like an Inco or Falconbridge decades ago, where you sort of had a gut wrenching of the core of Canadian mining, and I don’t think it’s ever been the same since,” he said.

“I think we’ll survive Teck.”

Canadian miners Inco and Falconbridge had tried to merge about 20 years ago, but in the end, Inco was absorbed by Brazil’s Vale and Falconbridge by Switzerland’s Xstrata.

In the copper space, da Silva doesn’t see a Canadian company emerging as a global champion, since most of the growth in the production of that critical mineral is coming from elsewhere in the world.

Gold is another matter. Da Silva considers Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. fitting the bill, as around 80 per cent of its net asset value is in Canada and it operates two of this country’s largest gold mines.

“There’s more ingredients than just where’s the head office and where’s the primary (stock) listing,” said da Silva. “I think it’s who is actually creating jobs in Canada, spending money in Canada in a meaningful way.”

Katherine Wetmore, a partner in consulting firm KPMG’s mining practice, said it seems there’s a true commitment to the Canadian market from Teck and Anglo American.

For that reason, she doesn’t see the blockbuster deal having a huge impact on Canada’s mining sector as a whole and notes some of the most valuable names on the TSX will continue to be from that industry.

“Largely, this is not, in my view, a huge change,” she said.

“In fact, it’s a net positive because it’s a larger company that will remain in Canada with its head office, and its investments and presence.”

Wetmore said she’s expecting to see continued deal activity in the Canadian mining space.

“The mining industry is very strong in Canada. There’s a lot of high potential players and projects, both in the precious metals space as well as in the critical minerals space.”

She said that appetite for deals is being driven by the industry’s focus on securing resources for technological advances and for the transition to lower emissions energy.

“I think this is all positive indication of where things are expected to go in the near future.”

Anglo Teck would maintain its listings on the London and Johannesburg stock exchanges and also apply for listings on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges.

The plan is to keep the company incorporated in London, which would mean the S&P/TSX composite index would lose Teck from its listings, since companies need to be based in the country to be included.

The deal will be subject to review under the Investment Canada Act, which can be used to block deals deemed not in the national interest.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 10, 2025.

Companies in this story: (TSX:TECK.B) (TSX:AEM)

Lauren Krugel, The Canadian Press