Mining megadeals are poor fix for copper shortage

By George Hay – Reuters

Anglo and Teck reckon they can create 175,000 more tons of annual copper production by 2030, thanks to the benefits of owning nearby mines. The outlay to get this extra capacity is just $1.9 billion. That works out at less than $11,000 per ton of extra production. Relative to the alternatives, that’s a steal.

If all mining M&A were like this, megadeals and the greater balance sheet heft they entail could help solve the supply crunch. Unfortunately, Anglo Teck looks like a one-off.