Reuters reported that global miner Anglo American and Chilean state copper giant Codelco will seek to extend their self imposed deadline for talks in a bid to resolve their spat over disputed copper assets.

A source linked to Codelco's legal team said that the miners, currently on a 30 day break from their legal wrangling, can ask for up to 60 more days to try to reach an agreement. Anglo supports the suspension of legal proceedings.

Investors are watching closely to see if world No 1 copper producer Codelco and Anglo will reach a deal or whether they will plunge back into a multibillion dollar courtroom showdown that could drag on for years.

Codelco said in October it would exercise the option to buy 49% stake in Anglo American Sur when the option window opened in January. But weeks later, Anglo stunned markets with the pre emptive sale of 24.5% stake in AAS to Mitsubishi Corporation with USD 5.4 billion deal that dented Codelco's ambitions but which it says secured better value for investors.

Since then, the firms have been tussling for the properties, which include the promising Los Bronces mine that used to be called La Disputada the disputed one in Spanish.

Source - Reuters

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