DEALS ANALYSIS
Deals activity: North America leads in value and growth; gold retains lead by sector
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,($1,409,746m) and in YoY growth, at 16%. Asia-Pacific and South and Central America have also managed to maintain positive growth of 122.46% and 15.15% respectively.
However, the volume of deals recorded by GlobalData decreased YoY in Middle East and Africa and Europe, with the former seeing a decline of 4.8% and the latter one of 0.56%.
Deals activity by type
| Deal type | Total deal value (US$m) | Total deal count | YoY change (volume) |
| Equity Offering | 466019 | 23718 | 51.21 |
| Asset Transaction | 531092 | 10658 | -3.36 |
| Acquisition | 2075646 | 9143 | 33.46 |
| Debt Offering | 820061 | 2519 | -13.68 |
| Partnership | 3477 | 1413 | 235.35 |
| Private Equity | 63883 | 670 | 81.51 |
| Venture Financing | 1505 | 234 | -11.06 |
| Merger | 52541 | 213 | -96.71 |
A breakdown of deals by type and volume shows very mixed results, with acquisitions up 33.46% YoY, mergers down -96.71%, partnerships up a huge 235.35%, and asset transactions down -3.36%. Financing deals have seen a similar mix, with venture financing down -11.06% YoY and debt offerings down -13.68%, although equity offerings are up 51.21% and private equity has seen a 81.51% 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 has continued to beat out silver in 2021. In 2020, other commodities saw 1,397 deals, while silver saw 1,402. Other commodites have so far in 2021 accrued 426 deals, while silver has seen only 341.
Note: All numbers as of 8 June 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
Rio Tinto partners with InoBat on lithium battery supply chain
Rio Tinto has joined forces with European battery maker InoBat to explore innovative lithium battery initiatives in Serbia.
Hawkmoon Resources to acquire Lava Gold Property in Canada
Hawkmoon Resources has agreed to acquire a 100% stake in the Lava gold property in Belleterre Gold Camp, Québec, Canada, from two arms-length vendors.
Codelco partners with Microsoft to digitise copper mining operations
Chile’s copper producer Codelco had reportedly signed a deal with Microsoft to accelerate the digitisation of its operations at the copper mines.
BHP and Encounter Resources sign farm-in deal for Australian copper project
BHP has exercised its option to sign a farm-in agreement with Encounter Resources for the Elliott copper project in Australia’s Northern Territory. The two firms also signed a joint venture agreement to undertake an exploration programme, including seismic surveys and drilling.
USA Rare Earth exercises option to pick 80% stake in Round Top project
USA Rare Earth has exercised its option to acquire 80% of the Round Top heavy rare earth project in Texas, US.
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.
