Bulletin: South32 Ltd.'s Strong Balance Sheet Can Accommodate Proposed Acquisition Of Arizona Mining; Ratings Unaffected

MELBOURNE (S&P Global Ratings) June 18, 2018--S&P Global Ratings said today that its ratings and outlook on South32 Ltd. (BBB+/Stable/A-2) are not affected following the company's proposed US$1.3 billion cash offer for the remaining 83% interest in Arizona Mining Inc. (Arizona) that the company doesn't already own. South32 currently has a minority interest of 17% in Arizona. We consider Arizona's focus on base metals to be in line with the scope of South32's current portfolio of assets. With the completion of the plan of arrangement, South32 will gain control and ownership over the future development of a world-class resource comprising zinc, lead, and silver in the U.S. It enables South32 to enter the North Americas region, expanding the company's geographic

...MELBOURNE (S&P Global Ratings) June 18, 2018--S&P Global Ratings said today that its ratings and outlook on South32 Ltd. (###+/Stable/A-2) are not affected following the company's proposed US$1.3 billion cash offer for the remaining 83% interest in Arizona Mining Inc. (Arizona) that the company doesn't already own. South32 currently has a minority interest of 17% in Arizona. We consider Arizona's focus on base metals to be in line with the scope of South32's current portfolio of assets. With the completion of the plan of arrangement, South32 will gain control and ownership over the future development of a world-class resource comprising zinc, lead, and silver in the U.S. It enables South32 to enter the North Americas region, expanding the company's geographic footprint. South32's recent acquisitions of advanced-stage mining projects will introduce some project execution risk over the medium term. Important to rating stability will be appropriate management of these risks. We consider South32's...

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