
China Minmetals unit seeks to take control of Australia's Highfield Resources, Yankuang Energy says
In September, Highfield Resources had said it would raise $220 million from Yankuang Energy and other parties in a deal that would make the Chinese coal miner its majority shareholder.
However, if completed, the non-binding deal between Qinghai Salt Lake Industry, Yankuang, and Highfield's current largest shareholder, EMR Capital, would result in Qinghai gaining control of Highfield instead.
Qinghai would also acquire Yankuang's Yancoal Canada operations including its Southey potash project with this deal, Yankuang said.
Highfield Resources and Qinghai Salt Lake Industry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Reuters
22 minutes ago
- Reuters
Australia should compromise to reach EU trade deal, minister says
CANBERRA, July 25 (Reuters) - Australia should accept compromises to reach a trade deal with the European Union and demonstrate that such agreements can still be reached in a more protectionist world, Trade Minister Don Farrell said on Friday. Farrell said in a speech at the Lowy Institute in Sydney that free trade was under threat and that Australia should work with other countries to defend it. In a question and answer session after the speech, Farrell said Australia-EU trade negotiations that restarted this year would be successful and it was in both sides' national interest to make it so. "It will require some compromises in our negotiations, but I think the imperative here is to show the rest of the world we're fair dinkum about free and open trade and we can do agreements with other countries," he said, using an Australian phrase meaning honest, genuine or sincere. Asked if he meant that Australian industry would have to step up in the national interest, he said: "I'm saying exactly that." A previous attempt to reach a trade deal failed in 2023, with Canberra wanting more ability to sell farm goods in Europe. The EU is seeking greater access to Australian critical minerals and lower tariffs on manufactured goods. Farrell also said a trade agreement with India should be reached "in the very near future." The two countries are aiming to conclude the second phase of a trade pact by the end of the year. Australia is also seeking to negotiate with the United States to reverse tariffs enacted by President Donald Trump and prevent new ones from being imposed. Canberra on Thursday loosened biosecurity rules to allow greater access to U.S. beef, though it said this was the result of a long-running scientific assessment rather than a part of trade talks.


The Guardian
3 hours ago
- The Guardian
Australia and UK sign 50-year defence treaty despite US wavering on Aukus submarine deal
Australia and the UK will sign a 50-year treaty to cement the Aukus submarine pact, even as the major partner in the Aukus agreement, the US, wavers on the deal. The new treaty will be announced by foreign minister Penny Wong and defence minister Richard Marles — alongside British foreign and defence secretaries David Lammy and John Healey — in the wake of the annual Aukmin talks in Sydney today. The US is not a party to the new treaty, which will be signed on Saturday. While negotiations over the Australia-UK defence treaty were flagged before US President Donald Trump took power, the document's inking re-affirms UK and Australia ties in the face of American tariffs and the Pentagon's yet-to-be-completed Aukus review. While the details of the treaty have not yet been announced, it is expected to cover a wide breadth of cooperation between the UK and Australia in developing the Aukus nuclear-powered submarine — the first of which will be built in the UK, before manufacturing begins in Adelaide. 'The UK-Australia relationship is like no other, and in our increasingly volatile and dangerous world, our anchoring friendship has real impact in the protection of global peace and prosperity,' the UK foreign secretary, David Lammy, said. The bilateral treaty will facilitate greater economic co-operation between the two nations by improving both countries' industrial capacity. As part of the existing defence agreement, Australia will pay about $4.6bn to support British industry to design and produce nuclear reactors to power the future Aukus-class submarines. In a joint statement, Marles and Wong said the Australia-UK ministerial talks were critical to the nations' shared interests. 'We take the world as it is – but together, we are working to shape it for the better,' Wong said. Under the $368bn Aukus program, Australia is scheduled to buy at least three Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarines from the US from the early 2030s. The new Aukus-class nuclear submarines will be built first in the UK: Australia's first Aukus boat, to be built in Adelaide, is expected to be in the water in the early 2040s. But the planned sale of US-built boats has been thrown into doubt by the Trump administration launching a review into the deal to examine whether it aligns with his 'America first' agenda. The review is being headed by the Pentagon's undersecretary of defense for policy, Elbridge Colby, who has previously declared himself 'sceptical' about the deal, fearing it could leave US sailors exposed and under-resourced. The Aukus agreement mandates that before any submarine can be sold to Australia, the US commander-in-chief – the president of the day – must certify that America relinquishing a submarine will not diminish the US navy's undersea capability. Sign up to Afternoon Update Our Australian afternoon update breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion The US's submarine fleet numbers are a quarter below their target and the country is producing boats at half the rate it needs to service its own needs, US government figures show. Defence analysts believe the US is likely to re-commit to Aukus, but have speculated the review could demand further financial contributions – or political commitments such as avowed support for the US in a conflict with China over Taiwan – from Australia in exchange for the sale of nuclear submarines and transfer of nuclear technology. The UK's carrier strike group, led by the Royal Navy flagship HMS Prince of Wales, arrived in Darwin on Wednesday during Talisman Sabre multi-nation military exercises hosted by Australia. It's the first UK carrier strike group to visit Australia since 1997. The international task group includes five core ships, 24 jets and 17 helicopters, centred on the flagship aircraft carrier. Marles and Wong will on Sunday join their UK counterparts in Darwin to observe the group in action. UK High Commissioner to Australia, Sarah MacIntosh, said the strike group's arrival was a demonstration of commitment to the region and the strong relationship with Canberra. 'This is an anchor relationship in a contested world,' she said.


Reuters
7 hours ago
- Reuters
Britain, Australia to deepen AUKUS commitment, economic ties
SYDNEY, July 25 (Reuters) - Australia and Britain's defence and foreign ministers arrived for talks in Sydney on Friday on boosting cooperation, including deepening the two countries commitment to the AUKUS nuclear submarine partnership. Britain's Foreign Minister David Lammy and Defence Secretary John Healey were met by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in Sydney, where talks are expected to focus on boosting trade ties and progressing the AUKUS partnership for Britain and Australia to build a new class of nuclear-powered submarine. The United States is reviewing the trilateral agreement struck in 2021, and has pressed Australia to increase defence spending to counter China's military build-up in the Indo Pacific region. A new British-Australian treaty will underpin each country's submarine programmes and is expected to be worth up to 20 billion pounds ($27 billion) to Britain in exports over the next 25 years, Britain's Ministry of Defence said. "AUKUS is one of Britain's most important defence partnerships, strengthening global security while driving growth at home," British defence minister John Healey said in a statement. The treaty "confirms our AUKUS commitment for the next half century," he added. Following the Australia-United Kingdom Ministerial Consultations (AUKMIN), ministers are scheduled to travel to the northern garrison city of Darwin, where the British aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales has arrived for the Talisman Sabre war games. As many as 40,000 troops from 19 countries are taking part in the Talisman Sabre exercises held from July 13 to August 4, which Australia's military has said are a rehearsal of joint war fighting that contribute to stability in the Indo-Pacific. Britain has significantly increased its participation in the exercise co-hosted by Australia and the United States, with 3,000 troops taking part.