Political aims, critical minerals strategy key to review of Teck-Anglo deal: experts

Jonathan Price, president and chief executive officer of Teck, joins BNN Bloomberg to discuss the company's deal with Anglo American.

Political considerations and critical minerals strategy will be top of mind for Ottawa as it considers whether to approve a planned tie-up between Canada’s Teck Resources Ltd. and U.K.-based Anglo American PLC.

The proposed merger would create a $70 billion critical minerals giant at a time when Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government is keenly aware of the sector’s importance, including naming two mining sites among the first five major projects it aims to fast-track.

The companies appear to have kept regulators in mind when hammering out the deal, which promises to keep the new entity’s headquarters in Vancouver and yield no net job losses. The question is whether this will be enough to help the deal go ahead after review under the Investment Canada Act, which can be used to block deals deemed not in the national interest.

• Latest updates on company news here

The review also marks the first time the act has been used to scrutinize a merger since it was updated.

The federal government announced changes to the Investment Canada Act on March 5 to incorporate a consideration for deals that may undermine Canada’s economic security.

“The Investment Canada Act is sort of an exceptional regime created for specific types of circumstances where a transaction raises concerns that basically go to national interest,” said Jennifer Quaid, a professor in the civil law faculty at the University of Ottawa.

“What is recognized is that it’s basically a political decision.”

After the merger was announced, Industry Minister Mélanie Joly said in a statement that the government will look at various issues, including the Vancouver headquarters, job creation and employment, capital expenditures and Indigenous participation.

• Latest economic news on BNNBloomberg.ca

Meanwhile, Carney emphasized the government’s critical minerals strategy on Thursday when two of the five priority projects announced were copper-focused. He said that critical minerals and mining are sectors of national interest with the potential to diversify markets.

Quaid noted the final call on approval is “discretionary,” made from a holistic analysis by the minister after being informed by other experts around them. She said the minister would have to decide whether a merger is in Canada’s interest and consider factors outside typical competition concerns.

“It’s supposed to be a political decision made in Canada’s interest, in the public interest, but it is ultimately a decision made by a minister who’s accountable to parliament, and it’s accepted that there will be probably competing interests that have to be weighed,” she said.

---

Daniel Johnson, The Canadian Press

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2025.