Mubadala and Trafigura close on sale of MATSA mining operation in Spain

Abu Dhabi: Mubadala Investment Company and Trafigura have completed the sale of 100 percent of Spanish mining operation Minas de Aguas Teñidas (MATSA) to the Australian mining and exploration company Sandfire Resources  (SFR).

MATSA owns and operates two mines in the municipality of Almonaster La Real and one mine in the province of Huelva, Andalucia. The company’s processing plant has the capacity to process more than 4.4 million tonnes of copper and polymetallic ore per year.

The sale is the culmination of significant investment in the MATSA mining complex and aligns with Mubadala’s mandate to recycle capital to maximize returns to its shareholder. Mubadala acquired its 50 percent stake in MATSA from Trafigura in 2015.

“MATSA is one of the world’s highest quality copper mines, with a highly skilled and productive workforce. Our concentrated efforts over the past six years have helped to fully realize the potential of this asset by significantly upgrading its standards of technological innovation, increasing its productive capacity and greatly improving its sustainability standards. The company is now well-positioned to benefit from global decarbonization initiatives under Sandfire’s ownership,” said Danny Dweik, Head of Industrials at Mubadala.