Rio Tinto and Glencore could save AUD 500m per annum by combining NSW coal assets
Rio Tinto, the Anglo and Australian-listed miner, and Glencore, the Swiss-based diversified miner, could save around AUD 500m (USD 424m) annually through the combination of their NSW coal operations, The Australian reported. The report said that Glencore pointed to the possible synergistic benefits available through the combination of its assets with those of Rio Tinto in Australia’s Hunter Valley during analyst site visits. The miners have a number of adjacent assets in the region, the report noted.
The report cited Credit Suisse analyst Liam Fitzpatrick, following a site visit, as saying that Glencore did not quantify the potential synergies, but noted that they could amount to almost AUD 500m per year. Fitzpatrick noted that the companies do not appear to have done much work toward combining the assets.
The paper said that Glencore launched a sell-side analyst tour this week of its Australian assets and told analysts that it has a synergistic and targeted acquisition strategy.
The paper said that the media has speculated recently that Glencore could be interested in buying Rio Tinto. Neither company has commented on the speculation.
An item in the Australian Financial Review’s Street Talk column said that well-placed sources indicated that Glencore may have appointed Standard Chartered Bank to consider an offer for Rio. However, the paper went on to say that other sources denied the talk.
Source The Australian, Australian Financial Review