South African gold miner strikes $1.08 billion deal to take over Australian firm

The transaction, first announced in May, moved a step closer after MAC Copper shareholders voted overwhelmingly in favor of the deal.

Harmony Gold, headquartered in Randfontein, is the country’s largest gold producer by volume and operates a portfolio of underground and open-pit mines concentrated in the Free State and Gauteng provinces, as well as surface retreatment projects.

The company has increasingly looked beyond gold, with copper and other base metals seen as critical to its diversification strategy.

If completed, the deal will give Harmony Gold ownership of the high-grade CSA copper mine near Cobar, New South Wales, one of Australia’s most significant underground copper operations.

MAC Copper, the Australia-based producer, wholly owns and operates the mine.

The acquisition has already cleared key hurdles, including approval from the South African Reserve Bank in August 2025. With only one regulatory requirement remaining, the Reserve Bank’s sign-off was seen as a critical milestone given Harmony’s South African incorporation and the deal’s cross-border nature.

For Harmony Gold, the takeover not only broadens its portfolio beyond gold but also strengthens its position in the global copper market, which is projected to expand in line with rising demand from renewable energy projects and electric vehicle production.

South Africa’s copper industry continues to contribute steadily to the country’s mineral export earnings, with copper ores and concentrates generating US $226.2 million in 2024, up slightly from US $221.6 million in 2023, according to World Bank data.

When refined copper products and alloys are included, total exports reached roughly US $795.6 million in 2023, indicating copper’s role as a secondary but stable source of revenue compared to gold and platinum, which dominate South Africa’s mining sector.

Analysts expect copper revenues to grow modestly by around 2% annually as global demand rises in renewable energy and electric vehicles. Yet South Africa remains a relatively small player in Africa’s copper industry, trailing far behind the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia, which dominate continental production.

With South Africa’s copper footprint modest compared to its gold and platinum sectors, Harmony Gold is looking abroad to diversify its portfolio and add about 40,000 tons of copper per year to its output.

Harmony chief executive Beyers Nel described the acquisition as a step that will fast-track the company’s strategy of building a portfolio of long-life, high-margin assets.

“This acquisition accelerates Harmony’s strategy of adding to our portfolio of high-margin, long-life ore bodies. MAC Copper serves as a strategic lever, moving us towards a more resilient, geographically diverse asset portfolio, with copper enhancing cash flow resilience. With our proven expertise in underground mining and exploration, we will unlock further value from CSA,” Nel said.

The deal not only provides a natural hedge against gold price volatility but also positions Harmony within the long-term growth trajectory of the global copper market, particularly as demand from renewable energy and electric vehicles expands.