Evolution Mining eyes more copper deals

Bloomberg News | August 12, 2025 | 4:04 pm Markets Australia Copper Gold

The Cowal mine located 350 km west of Sydney is Evolution’s cornerstone asset. Credit: Evolution Mining

Australia’s second-largest gold miner is looking to boost its exposure to copper, even after posting a record full-year profit following a surge in bullion prices.

“We’ve certainly got capacity to bring more copper assets in,” Evolution Mining Ltd. chief executive officer Lawrie Conway said in an interview with Bloomberg TV on Wednesday. “We’ve got a little bit more optionality when we’re looking at what assets could be coming into play over the next couple of years.”

Deal-making interest for copper has surged, with miners seeking to increase their exposure to the coveted metal as the energy transition accelerates. Major deposits are increasingly rare and costly to develop, while the most obvious acquisition targets are effectively out of reach, either because of ownership constraints or high valuations.

Conway pointed to two deals — its purchase of an 80% stake in Northparkes in 2023 and its acquisition of Ernest Henry from Glencore Plc in 2021 — as snaring long-life assets which have helped hedge against any downturns in gold prices.

“We can have up to 40% of our revenue in copper, and at the moment it’s about 25%,” Conway said. “Gold investors do like having some of that copper exposure.

Bullion’s record-breaking rally — with prices topping $3,500 an ounce in April — has renewed deal-making across the sector following a lengthy period of subdued M&A activity marked by overspending and operational setbacks. Still, Conway said Evolution has “no urgency” to make new gold-mining deals.

While elevated gold prices mean some acquisitions may be negotiated toward the top of the market, bigger producers such as Newmont Corp. and Barrick Mining Corp. have been encouraged to sell smaller mines that — without fresh investment — are approaching the end of their lives. On the other hand, medium-sized miners now face the need to replace aging assets.

Earlier Wednesday, Evolution said its profit for the year to June 30 more than doubled from the previous 12 months to A$926 million ($605 million). Its shares in Sydney rose as much as 7% to a two-month high.”

(By Sybilla Gross)