It was a relationship that couldn’t last: BHP Billiton has notified its global rival, Anglo American, that it would not renew its agreement allowing Anglo subsidiary De Beers the right to market 35% of the diamonds produced at BHP’s Ekati mine in the Northwest Territories.
The 3-year contract is due to expire at the end of the year. Over the report period ended Oct. 1, Anglo rose $2.11 to US$13.50, while BHP was also up, 96 to US$10.38.
In related news, New York-listed elite jeweler Tiffany & Co. announced it would open a diamond-cutting and polishing facility in Yellowknife to process its share of stones from the Diavik mine, which is due to open next year. Tiffany owns 14.7% of TSX-listed Aber Resources, which owns 40% of Diavik. The remainder of the mine is owned by British giant Rio Tinto. Over the week, Tiffany rose 37 to US$22.03 while Rio Tinto advanced $4.22 to reach US$66.67.
Meanwhile, the rest of the base metal miners were generally up on the week despite metal prices that stagnated at low levels: Alcoa rebounded $1.18 to US$20.75; Phelps Dodge tacked on $2.71 to US$24.93; and Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold added $1.30 to US$13.50. CVRD went the other way, falling 30 to US$23.55.
It was a grimmer scene in the gold sector, with mining stocks reflecting a $5 drop in spot gold prices to around US$320 per oz.
Newmont fell $2.56 to US$26.88; AngloGold declined $2.45 to US$26; Gold Fields was down $2.29 to US$11.51; Harmony Gold dropped $1.94 to US$14.66; and Ashanti retreated 73 to US$5.26.
Be the first to comment on "BHP shuts Anglo out of Ekati"