Finance
Factbox-Mining mega‑deals that built global giants
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on January 9, 2026
3 min readLast updated: January 20, 2026
Global Banking & Finance Review®
Company
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on January 9, 2026
3 min readLast updated: January 20, 2026
The article discusses major mining deals, including Rio Tinto's potential merger with Glencore, highlighting industry giants' growth.
Jan 9 (Reuters) - Rio Tinto is in early talks to buy Glencore, the companies said, in what could create the world's largest mining company with a combined market value of nearly $207 billion.
The move comes as global miners race to scale up in metals like copper, seen as critical to the energy transition, fueling a surge in project expansions and takeover attempts.
Glencore has an enterprise value of $99 billion, according to LSEG data, which would make its purchase the sector's biggest-ever deal.
Here is a list of other major mining deals:
GLENCORE BUYS XSTRATA
In February 2012, a year after Glencore debuted on the London Stock Exchange, it agreed an all-share purchase of Switzerland-headquartered miner Xstrata, which had an enterprise value of nearly $46 billion, according to LSEG data.
The deal created a commodities powerhouse spanning mining, agriculture, oil and trading.
RIO TINTO BUYS ALCAN
In 2007, Rio Tinto bought Canada's Alcan to create the world's No. 1 aluminum producer in an attempt to diversify beyond its strength in iron ore and copper.
Rio Tinto's offer, which had an enterprise value of $43 billion, beat a hostile bid from U.S. aluminium producer Alcoa.
ANGLO AMERICAN AGREES TO BUY TECK RESOURCES
In September 2024, London-listed Anglo American and Canada's Teck Resources announced plans to merge, creating a new global copper-focused heavyweight.
The all-share deal, while structured as a merger of equals, will involve Anglo acquiring Teck, which currently has an enterprise value of $39 billion, according to LSEG data.
It is headed for an antitrust clearance in Europe after regulators signalled an absence of competition concerns.
FREEPORT-MCMORAN BUYS PHELPS DODGE
In 2007, Freeport-McMoRan completed its acquisition of Phelps Dodge Corp, one of the most famous names in U.S. mining history, to form the world's largest publicly traded copper company. Phelps Dodge had an enterprise value of nearly $23 billion.
The combined entity's footprint spanned from Indonesia to South America.
NEWMONT BUYS NEWCREST MINING
In 2023, Newmont, the world's largest gold miner, acquired Australia's top gold producer Newcrest Mining, which had an enterprise value of nearly $20 billion.
(Compiled by Rajasik Mukherjee, Nikita Maria Jino and Sameer Manekar in Bengaluru; Editing by Jamie Freed)
A merger is a business combination where two companies join to form a single entity, often to enhance competitiveness, expand market reach, or achieve synergies.
An acquisition occurs when one company purchases another company, gaining control over its assets and operations, often to expand its market presence.
Enterprise value is a measure of a company's total value, often used as a more comprehensive alternative to market capitalization, including debt and excluding cash.
The resources sector encompasses industries involved in the extraction and processing of natural resources, including mining, oil, and gas.
Project expansions refer to the growth of existing projects or the initiation of new projects to increase production capacity or market reach.
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