Canada gives Glencore final green light to buy Teck coal assets

Mining and commodities giant Glencore has received the final regulatory approval needed in its $7bn acquisition of steelmaking coal assets from New York-listed Teck Resources.

The deal to buy a 77% stake in British Columbia (BC) based Elk Valley Resources (EVR) from Teck, first announced in November, received approval late on Thursday from the Government of Canada under the Investment Canada Act.

That followed a number of commitments made by both Glencore and Teck to appease Canada's foreign-investment rules, such as ensuring that the majority of EVR's directors are Canadian, adhering to certain environmental commitments and promising to establish and maintain a Canadian head office in Vancouver.

Canada's industry minister François-Philippe Champagne said the approval was a result of "months of discussions with both Glencore and Teck as well as information sought from the BC provincial government, and federal departments including Environment and Climate Change Canada, and Natural Resources Canada".

Glencore's chief executive Gary Nagle said the company was "pleased" to have received the final green light to bring EVR into the wider group.

"Glencore's Canadian assets form a significant part of our global business, and some have a history that dates back more than 100 years. The investment in EVR will further support our position as one of the largest diversified miners and suppliers of critical minerals in Canada," he said.

Nagle added that the acquisition will expand Glencore's ability to provide high quality steelmaking coal, "an important transition-enabling commodity", to global customers.

Glencore's shares were up 0.6% at 483.8p by 1125 BST, while Teck was rising 3.4% in pre-market trade on Wall Street to $51.80.