“This acquisition marks a significant milestone in our strategy to evolve into a global gold and copper producer,” says Beyers Nel, CEO of Harmony Gold. “CSA is a high-grade, long-life copper asset located in a Tier-1 jurisdiction. This asset will meaningfully enhance our business and support our long-term growth.”

Nel added that the acquisition underscores Harmony’s commitment to sustainable value creation: “Harmony is one of the world’s leading gold producers, with a proud 75-year history and more than two decades of experience in Australia and Papua New Guinea. Our proven operating model - extending the life of mines through disciplined investment in our orebodies and our people - has consistently delivered long-term value for all stakeholders.”

Integration of the CSA mine into the Harmony portfolio begins immediately. Over the next three months, Harmony will embed the operation into its wider group structure, aligning planning, performance, and reporting frameworks. The company expects this process to unlock synergies, improve operational efficiency, and position CSA as a strong contributor to Harmony’s copper-growth ambitions.

With the deal now complete, Harmony takes a decisive step toward diversifying its portfolio beyond gold, securing a strong foothold in the growing copper sector critical to the global energy transition.

Market analyst considerations

Strategic rationale: Analysts are positive on the diversification of Harmony into copper, a metal critical for electrification/green energy. The deal is seen as a step toward reducing gold-only risk.
Valuation and execution risk: While the strategic logic is strong, many analysts emphasise that paying a premium, taking on a new commodity, and integrating a non-gold asset introduces risk.
Timing and integration: The buy rating for Harmony signals optimism, but the earlier caution highlights that many are waiting to see how fast the CSA asset is integrated and how costs and operational performance evolve.
Market reaction: For MAC Copper, the premium and delisting process were already baked into the deal; the Hold rating suggests limited upside for remaining MAC shareholders’ post-deal.
Financial metrics: Some commentary points out that Harmony’s current valuation and multiple might already reflect the deal to an extent, reducing the margin of safety.