Anglo American plc (LSE:AAL) is setting out a clear, compelling and decisive plan to unlock significant value from its portfolio and accelerate the delivery of consistently stronger shareholder returns. Following completion of the asset review initiated during 2023, Anglo American plans to implement a number of major structural changes to accelerate delivery against its strategic priorities of operational excellence, portfolio simplification, and growth. The key steps will include: Divest Anglo American's high quality steelmaking coal interests.

Proceeds will be used to reset Anglo American's balance sheet; Urgent action is being taken to limit the impact of short term market pressure on cash flow and, in parallel, exploring options for care and maintenance and divestment; Demerger of Anglo American Platinum in a way that both optimises value for Anglo American shareholders and Anglo American Platinum shareholders, and ensures that such separation is implemented in a responsible and orderly way, with due regard for ensuring Anglo American Platinum's ongoing positive stakeholder value contribution. The demerger will enable Anglo American's shareholders to gain direct participation in strong PGMs fundamentals and Anglo American Platinum's leading competitive and market positions and Having made significant progress towards finalising the sales agreement with the Government of the Republic of Botswana, Anglo American is exploring the full range of options to separate the De Beers business. This will give both Anglo American and De Beers a new level of strategic flexibility to maximise value for both Anglo American and the Government of the Republic of Botswana, as De Beers' shareholders.

Duncan Wanblad, Chief Executive of Anglo American, said, "We set out our clear strategic priorities earlier this year - operational excellence, portfolio simplification, and growth. Our decision to focus Anglo American's portfolio in our world-class resource asset base in copper and premium iron ore - while retaining our crop nutrients optionality at Woodsmith - marks a major new phase in executing our strategy. "We expect that a radically simpler business will deliver sustainable incremental value creation through a step change in operational performance and cost reduction.

"Anglo American's shareholders will see the full undiluted upside from these extensive changes, with the value of our copper and iron ore assets brought to the fore. This next step in the transformation of Anglo American's portfolio is set to accelerate the recognition of value that has been inherent in our business for many years and provide Anglo American's shareholders with undiluted and differentiated participation in the major structural demand trends, while minimising any frictional costs associated with this major portfolio transformation. "These actions represent the most radical changes to Anglo American in decades.

I believe these are the right decisions to position Anglo American to capitalise on the outstanding resource endowment opportunities within our portfolio today. Our proven and differentiated capabilities within Anglo American, our global relationship networks and our longstanding reputation as a responsible mining company will help us unlock numerous of these and other opportunities in the jurisdictions where our experience and track record are most valuable and most valued, namely in South America and Southern Africa. "Of course, we are conscious of the impacts of making such far-reaching changes, particularly on our employees.

We see considerable opportunities for our employees, both in delivering the full potential of Anglo American and in the businesses that we will be divesting or demerging, all of which are high quality businesses in their own right. By implementing these portfolio changes ourselves, we will be able to do so in a manner that is respectful of our employees, host communities and countries, including ensuring that in South Africa in particular Anglo American continues to play its role as a responsible business leader to support the country's national priorities. "We are taking clear and decisive action to deliver value - safely, responsibly and reliably - in the long term interests of our shareholders and other stakeholders, and to deliver the products that are so critical to enabling the energy transition and supporting improved global living standards and food security".