Harmony Gold CEO Beyers Nel has brought the group’s long-awaited strategic shift to fruition, cementing its push into copper by concluding the $1bn acquisition of one of Australia’s highest-grade mines.
Unlike Harmony’s other attempts at diversifying into copper, the takeover of MAC Copper adds immediate ounces to the miner’s portfolio, sealing the deal on a strategic shift set out by former CEO Peter Steenkamp half a decade ago.
The transaction comes as copper prices have rallied more than 17% this year while disruptions at big mines continue to tighten supply, helping the metal shrug off US tariff-driven volatility.
The group has struggled to get its other copper ventures up and running, with the Eva Copper project in Queensland, Australia, only expected to reach first production in 2028, six years after its acquisition.
The Wafi-Golpu project, a Papua New Guinea joint venture with gold behemoth Newmont, has also hit several roadblocks since Harmony acquired its stake in 2020.
While it was able to salvage the project in 2023 through a memorandum of understanding with local government authorities, political unrest in the country had already put the development on hold for three years.
Earlier this year, Nel told Business Times that Wafi-Golpu had been frustratingly slow to progress. The episode represented a huge setback for the company, with the asset comprising more than 45% of Harmony’s total mineral reserves.
Record gold prices freeing up capital this year have now allowed the group to formally kick-start its copper strategy, allowing it to finally bring copper ounces to the market in the coming months.
The acquisition promises to add about 40,000 tonnes of annual copper production to Harmony’s portfolio, contributing immediate positive cash flow and taking the SA miner a step further in its drive for diversification.
Energy transition to lift copper demand
Offshore copper mines serve as a natural hedge against concentration risk, a downturn in gold prices and the inevitable depletion of the group’s ageing local gold mines, the largest of which were sold off by AngloGold Ashanti in its 2020 SA exit.
A bigger copper footprint also provides Harmony exposure to energy transition trends with the shift to electric cars and solar panels as well as the growth of data centres and AI expected to boost copper demand over the next five years.
In a statement on Friday, Nel said, “The integration of the CSA mine into the Harmony portfolio will now commence.
“Over the next three months, Harmony will be embedding the mine into the broader Harmony Group, aligning its operations with our proven planning and performance frameworks. This process is designed to unlock synergies, enhance operational efficiency and position CSA to contribute meaningfully to Harmony’s long-term value creation,” said Nel.
With a history dating back nearly 150 years, CSA has a long mine life with huge exploration potential, enabling Harmony to produce about 100,000 tonnes of copper a year on the East Coast of Australia within the next five years.
Harmony acquired 100% of MAC at $12.25 per share, implying a total equity value of $1.01bn funded using cash reserves and a $1.25bn bridge facility.
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