* Call on Anglo to turn to platinum, Brazil troubles
* Anglo review of platinum due by year-end
By Clara Ferreira-Marques and Sinead Cruise
LONDON, Aug 24 (Reuters) – Investors in Anglo American
said its $2.8 billion sale of a stake in its Chilean
unit that ended a 10-month battle was a reasonable compromise
and called on the miner to shift its focus to other problem
areas, including South African platinum.
Anglo and state-owned Chilean rival Codelco agreed on
Thursday to a deal that reduced the global miner’s ownership of
its coveted Anglo American Sur (AAS) properties to 50.1 percent
but left it in control and may have salvaged its relationships
in the world’s top copper-producing country.
“My take would be that at least they have managed to broker
some kind of deal that brings an end to the hostilities. It
probably is a reasonable compromise,” one of the 20 largest
institutional shareholders in Anglo said on Friday.
“It could have been worse. If you go toe-to-toe with a
government body like that, you could end up with a much poorer
outcome. We are reasonably happy that they can have a sensible
working relationship there going forward.”
Anglo said the two companies would, for example, work
together on development of AAS’s promising Los Bronces mine and
Codelco’s nearby Andina.
Codelco, the world’s largest copper producer, said in
October last year it wanted to exercise a long-standing option
to purchase 49 percent of AAS when the option window opened in
January this year.
Continued…
