DEALS ANALYSIS
Deals activity: North America leads in deal value; other commodities beat out silver
Powered by
Deals activity by geography
Mining industry deals, as captured by GlobalData’s Mining Intelligence Centre, are up year-on-year (YoY) across most regions.
North America is leading in terms of deal value, ($1,400,690m) but its 26% YoY growth has been bested by Asia-Pacific (33%). Europe has also managed to maintain a positive growth, with an increase of 8%.
However, the volume of deals recorded by GlobalData decreased YoY in the Middle East and Africa and South and Central America, with the former seeing a decline of 17% and the latter one of 8%.
Deals activity by type
| Deal type | Total deal value (US$m) | Total deal count | YoY change (volume) |
| Equity Offering | 447713 | 22985 | 14 |
| Asset Transaction | 526101 | 10364 | -22 |
| Acquisition | 2054274 | 8949 | -11 |
| Debt Offering | 786327 | 2437 | -6 |
| Partnership | 3404 | 1369 | -84 |
| Private Equity | 61043 | 642 | 157 |
| Venture Financing | 1370 | 217 | -73 |
| Merger | 52539 | 205 | -64 |
A breakdown of deals by type and volume shows a general downtrend, with acquisitions down -11% YoY, mergers down -64%, partnerships down -84%, and asset transactions down -22%. Financing deals have seen a similar downturn, with venture financing down -73% YoY and debt offerings down -6%, although equity offerings are up 14%. Private equity has seen surprisingly good growth, with a 157% increase.
Deals activity by sector
The most notable development apparent in GlobalData’s analysis of mining industry deals by sector is the continuing strength of gold. All other sectors have retained their relative rankings by volume from the year before, though other commodities have risen above silver once more.
In 2020, other commodities saw 1,363 deals, while silver saw 1,368. Other commodites have so far in 2021 accrued 74 deals, while silver has seen only 67.
Note: All numbers as of 17 February 2021. Deals captured by GlobalData cover M&As, strategic alliances, various types of financing and contract service agreements.
For more insight and data, visit GlobalData's Mining Intelligence Centre.
Latest deals in brief
Havilah signs MOU with Aroha to develop Australian uranium assets
Australian mineral exploration company Havilah Resources has signed a binding memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Aroha Resources for the exploration and potential development of uranium assets in Australia.
The firm’s exploration licences are mainly located north of the Barrier Highway, and are said to be highly prospective for Tertiary paleochannel-hosted uranium deposits similar to the nearby Honeymoon uranium project.
Pershing to acquire three new properties in US
Pershing Resources, a precious and base metals exploration company, has signed agreements with undisclosed firms to acquire three new properties in north-western Arizona, US.
Walcott Resources signs deal to acquire lithium property in Canada
Walcott Resources has signed an agreement to acquire a 100% interest in the Route 381 Lithium Property located in Quebec, Canada.
Covering 2,126ha, the Route 381 Lithium Property comprises 40 mineral claims located in James Bay Territory, north of Matagami. It is located directly west of and adjacent to Stria Lithium’s Pontax-Lithium project.
Endeavour Mining to divest stake in Agbaou gold mine in Côte d’Ivoire
Gold producer Endeavour Mining has signed an agreement to divest its 85% stake in its non-core Agbaou gold mine in Côte d’Ivoire to Africa-focused gold company Allied Gold for up to $80m.
Located nearly 200km north of the port city of Abidjan, the Agbaou open-pit gold mine began commercial production in 2014.
Vale to acquire Mitsui’s stakes in Moatize coal mine and infrastructure
Brazilian firm Vale has signed a heads of agreement to acquire Japan-based Mitsui & Co’s stakes in the Moatize coal mine in Mozambique and Nacala Logistics Corridor in south-east Africa.
Rhizen signs oncology drug development deal with Curon
Swiss biopharma company Rhizen Pharmaceuticals has signed an exclusive licensing agreement with Curon Biopharmaceutical to develop and commercialise Tenalisib for oncology in the Greater China region. Tenalisib, a highly selective dual PI3K delta and gamma inhibitor, is currently in Phase II clinical development for haematological malignancies. The US FDA granted fast track and orphan drug designations for the drug candidate Tenalisib as a treatment for relapsed/refractory peripheral T-cell lymphoma and cutaneous T-cell lymphoma.
