US asked Brazil to review sale of MMG nickel assets — South China Morning Post
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, during negotiations on easing tariffs, asked Brazil to review Anglo American’s sale of nickel assets to MMG, a company controlled by the Chinese state. The South China Morning Post reports, citing two people familiar with the course of the negotiations.
According to the publication, Washington made this demand in consultations on lifting 50% tariffs on Brazilian goods imposed by US President Donald Trump last year. Brazilian officials rejected the proposed terms, saying that the country applies the same rules to foreign investors regardless of the origin of their capital.
Terms of the US proposal
The proposal envisaged that Brazil would notify the United States in advance about deals to sell mining assets before their closure. Transactions involving rare-earth metals were to be subject to US review, while US companies would be given an opportunity to purchase assets before their sale was approved.
Greer also asked for restrictions on investments by “non-market entities” and foreign structures that raise concerns in mining, processing and other critical industrial sectors. In Brazil, this wording was seen as a reference to China, the country’s largest trading partner and an increasingly significant investor in its mining industry. In January, the Brazilian side also rejected a second, shorter version of the proposal that repeated several of these demands.
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Sale of Anglo American assets
In February last year, Anglo American agreed to sell its nickel business to MMG’s Singaporean subsidiary for up to $500 million. Of this amount, $350 million is to be paid after the deal is completed, while the remainder depends on nickel prices and the final investment decision on new projects.
The assets include the Barro Alto and Codemin ferronickel operations in Goiás state, which produced 39,700 tonnes of nickel in ferronickel last year, as well as the undeveloped Jacaré project in Pará state and Morro Sem Bone in Mato Grosso state. MMG and its parent company, China Minmetals, are controlled by China’s State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission.
Brazil’s antitrust authority Cade last year reviewed a complaint by CoreX Holding, which said it had offered $900 million for the same assets. Cade’s investigative unit closed the case. Meanwhile, the European Commission is conducting an in-depth investigation into the deal: it warned that MMG could redirect supplies of low-carbon ferronickel to affiliated Chinese steel companies. MMG disagreed with the assessment and offered guarantees to European customers.
Brazil and the United States resumed formal negotiations on August 31. Until they are concluded, two rounds of US tariffs remain in force, amounting to a combined 37.5% and covering about 23% of Brazilian exports to the United States; rare-earth metals are already exempt from these tariffs.
