British mining corporation Anglo American has officially announced a strategic agreement to sell its Australian coking coal operations. The massive deal, concluded with private industrial group Dhilmar, is potentially valued at $3.88 billion. This move marks a radical transformation of the London-based giant's business as part of a global asset restructuring.

A complete exit from the coal sector will allow the diversified group to significantly streamline its internal corporate structure and reduce its carbon footprint. The main medium-term goal of this maneuver is to prepare for a major merger with Canadian producer Teck Resources. Following the successful completion of the merger of the two commodity giants, the reborn Anglo American plans to focus key investments and operations on copper mining, for which demand is rapidly growing globally.

The financial terms of the agreement with Dhilmar include a combined payment structure for the acquired coal mines. The buyer is obligated to immediately pay a guaranteed $2.3 billion in direct cash upon closing. The remaining amount, up to $1.58 billion, is held in deferred payments, the final amount of which will directly depend on market conditions and global coking coal price dynamics in the coming years.

For the acquiring party, Dhilmar, this acquisition marks the next stage in its aggressive expansion of its global portfolio. The private group is already known in the market for major transactions—in particular, its key international asset until recently was the Canadian Eleonore gold mine, which it successfully acquired from the American corporation Newmont last year. Investments in the Australian coal sector will allow Dhilmar to significantly diversify its business and gain a foothold in the metallurgical raw materials market.