Jan 8 (Reuters) – Glencore said on Thursday it was in early talks to be acquried by Rio Tinto, in a combination that would potentially create the world’s largest mining company.
The combined company would have an enterprise value of more than $260 billion, according to the Financial Times, which first reported the news.
“Glencore confirms that it is in preliminary discussions with Rio Tinto about a possible combination of some or all of their businesses, which could include an all-share merger between Rio Tinto and Glencore,” it said in a statement.
The Swiss miner and trader added that any deal would be implemented through Rio Tinto’s acquisition of Glencore through a court-sanctioned scheme of arrangement and that there was no certainty that the terms of any deal or offer would be agreed upon.
The deadline is 3:30 p.m. London time on that 10th business day.
U.S.-listed shares of Glencore were up 6% after the company confirmed deal talks, while Rio Tinto’s U.S. listed shares were down 0.6%.
Rio Tinto, the world’s biggest iron ore miner, has a market capitalization of about $142 billion, while Glencore is valued at $65 billion as of last close.
Glencore had approached Rio Tinto in 2024 about combining the two big copper producers but the discussions were short-lived.
(Reporting by Shivani Tanna in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar and Anil D’Silva)
