UPDATE: Anglo American To Sell Scaw South Africa For $440 Million

Globally diversified miner Anglo American PLC (AAL.LN) Tuesday said it has agreed to sell its Scaw South Africa Ltd. steelmaking business for 3.4 billion rand ($440 million), bringing the total proceeds from the sale of its non-core assets to $3.7 billion.

This virtually closes Anglo American non-core asset disposal program that was launched in 2009 and resulted in the sale of various industrial assets including its zinc operations. Anglo American is now focusing on seven commodities--copper, diamonds, iron ore, metallurgical coal, nickel, platinum and thermal coal.

Still outstanding is the regulatory approval for the creation of a joint venture that will house the remainder of its previously labeled non-core assets, its U.K. Tarmac construction materials operations.

Anglo American is selling Scaw South Africa, which makes highly specialized steel components for the mining, rail, power, offshore oil and gas, and construction industries, to a consortium led by state-owned Industrial Development Corp. and a series of Black Economic Empowerment partners.

Anglo American sold Scaw's international business Moly-Cop and AltaSteel to OneSteel Ltd. (OST.AU) in December 2010 for $932 million.

It also sold the majority of its Tarmac business and is in the process of creating a joint venture with French construction company LaFarge SA (LFRGY) which has been delayed after the U.K. Competition Commission expressed concerns in February that the new JV could hamper competition in the construction materials industry. LaFarge said in a statement then that the competition concerns could be "remedied."

Anglo American agreed to sell Scaw South Africa for $440 million, making the total amount accrued from the sale of Scaw's businesses $1.4 billion. Scaw South Africa was sold to a consortium that includes IDC, and BEE groups Izingwe Holdings Ltd. and Shanduka Resources Ltd. The deal is expected to close sometime in 2012, subject to regulatory approval.

Liberum Capital said in a note that the Scaw asset sale was a "small positive" for Anglo American, adding that Scaw's total proceeds were 6.6 times greater than its 2010 earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization or Ebitda contribution to Anglo American's results, prior to when the sale began.

As of 1230 GMT, the company's shares were flat at 2,294 pence a share.

Anglo American also disposed of other non-core assets during the last three years, including its zinc assets in Southern Africa and Ireland for $1.3 billion to Vedanta Resources PLC (VED.LN).

-By Alex MacDonald, Dow Jones Newswires; [phone]; [e-mail]